Olympique Lyonnais - Taking on moneybags PSG

[Klippybo]

OLYMPIQUE LYONNAIS - TAKING ON MONEYBAGS PSG

The title says it all! In this save I will be managing Lyon to try and stop Paris Saint-Germain winning everything both domestically and continentally. With an updated database it will be nigh on impossible for the first season or two as they have brought in Donnarumma, Wijnaldum, Hakimi, Ramos and a certain Lionel Messi but I hope to in time put them in their place.

Things will never be easy in this save as PSG will always spend money to bring in the top players so it is up to me to build a squad good enough to compete and eventually topple them.

I cant remember ever managing in France before which is quite surprising although I think I was once Marseille manager in the Champions League Challenge so it will be a fresh experience for me.

Lyon are one of the biggest clubs in France but despite winning a load of trophies they actually came mostly in a 7 year spell as all 7 of their league titles came in a row from 2001-08 and in that spell they won 14 of their 21 trophies!!!!!

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Founded - 1950
Nicknames - Les Gones (The Kids), L 'OL
Ground - Groupama Stadium
Capacity - 59,186


HONOURS

Ligue 1 Winners (7) - 2001-02, 2002-03, 2003-04, 2004-05, 2005-06, 2006-07, 2007-08

Ligue 2 Winners (3) - 1950-51, 1953-54, 1988-89

Coupe de France Winners (5) - 1963-64, 1966-67, 1972-73, 2007-08, 2011-12

Coupe de la Ligue Winners (1) - 2000-01

Trophee des Champions Winners (8) - 1973, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2012
​

 

[Klippybo]

YEAR BY YEAR RECORD​

SEASON	LIGUE 1	COUPE DE FRANCE	TROPHEE DES CHAMPIONS	UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE	UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE	UEFA EUROPEAN SUPER CUP
2020-21	WINNERS	Runners-Up	-	-	WINNERS	-
2021-22

 

[Klippybo]

PRE-SEASON & AUGUST

I rock up at the club with no pre-conceived plans. I knew about the qualities of Aouar, Dembele, Lucas Paqueta and the prospects of Cherki but other than that my knowledge of Lyon and their playing staff is quite limited. Once I assessed the squad it became clear that we needed some defensive reinforcements at CB and RB as there was not only a lack of depth there but also a lack of quality so with £13m available that was where I was going to concentrate my efforts in the transfer market.

I appointed some backroom staff with my favourite 2 appointments being Rene Higuita as a GK coach and Laurent Robert as a standard coach.

In the end I didnt sell any players and at the time of writing (first game of the season) there isnt even any offers or players up for sale so it has been a pretty seamless introduction to the club. I have however brought in 2 new players.

Firstly Eliaquim Mangala was signed on a free transfer after he was let go by Valencia. He will play alongside Jason Denayer at CB and he should do a job for a season or two. At 29y/o he is in the prome of his career and his value of £17.5m shows how much of a bargain this signing is!

In at RB is Djibril Sidibe from AS Monaco. Another player who is in the prime of his career, Sidibe joined us for £5m so I am happy with that deal and he will compete with my club captain, Leo Dubois for the RB spot.

My aim for the season is to qualify for the Champions League next season as if we have any hope of catching PSG we need to get our hands on the money that the Champions League brings. We are in the Europa League this season and I would like to think that we could reach the latter stages of the competition.

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AUGUST

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois*, Denayer, Mangala (Marcelo), Cornet (Emerson), Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar, Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta, Cherki (Kadewere), Toko Ekambi

A fine start to my time at the club. Rayan Cherki just turned 17 so for him to score early on was extremely pleasing. We were always in control and in the 2nd half we scored twice in 4min to make things comfortable. We were missing a few players here so to win so easily is a good sign.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer (Dembele), Mangala, Cornet, Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar*, Reine-Adelaide (Kadewere), Lucas Paqueta (Caqueret), Cherki (Emerson), Toko Ekambi

Maxence Caqueret came to our rescue here as the 20y/o struck late on for us to defeat 9 man RC Lens. We really should have scored more goals but a combination of poor misses, good saves and hitting the woodwork denied us for the most part.

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Just before the RC Lens match I made another signing. Once again it was a defender that I brought in and he is Shkodran Mustafi. The German international has joined us on a free transfer and he will be a strong player for this squad and with Denayer and Mangala as his direct competitors I will have a decision to make when he is fully fit.

 

[Klippybo]

Houssem Aouar


SEPTEMBER

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Denayer, Mangala, Emerson (Cornet), Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar*, Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta (Caqueret), Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele (Kadewere)

Disappointing. We were the better team as you would expect but we just couldnt find the back of the net. There were a few poor individual performances but that can be put down to some players lacking match fitness.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Mangala, Emerson (Cornet), Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar*, Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi, Dembele

We were outstanding here as we hit FC Nantes for 6. We had 6 different goalscorers and already this season we have played against 9 men which is pretty incredible although we only played 5min against 9. Lucas Paqueta scored the goal of the game as he rifled in a shot from 25 yards.

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Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer (Marcelo), Mangala, Emerson* (Cornet), Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar, Reine-Adelaide (Kadewere), Lucas Paqueta (Pape Cheikh Diop), Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele

Our 5th game of the season and our 5th clean sheet!

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Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Mangala, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes (Thiago Mendes), Aouar, Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta (Kadewere), Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele*

WOOOOOOO!!!!

Our fiercest rivals are Saint-Etienne so to wipe the floor with them by 6 goals to nil is amazing. Moussa Dembele was the star of the show with a fine hat-trick while Emerson popped up with another goal. In 7 league games so far this season we have scored 18, conceded 0 and have 12 different goalscorers!

The attendance for this match broke the previous attendance record!

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SUMMARY

We really enjoyed ourselves this month! Sure we drew with Strasbourg in our first match of the month but we responded by beating Nantes 6-0, Troyes 2-0 and then in the Rhone derby we humiliated Saint-Etienne 6-0! We are currently top of the league having not conceded a goal but lying 1pt beneath us is PSG and they, despite losing 1-0 to Monaco have scored more goals than us!!!!!

Everything seems to be going pretty well!!!

In the Europa League we have been drawn alongside Ludogorets, Real Sociedad and Antwerp so not the easiest of groups but also not the hardest either and I would like to think that we will qualify from it.

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PLAYER OF THE MONTH
HOUSSEM AOUAR

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LIGUE 1

​

 

[Klippybo]

Emerson


OCTOBER

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Denayer, Mangala, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar, Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta (Cherki), Toko Ekambi, Dembele*

Brilliant. We didnt smash in the 6 goals like we have done in previous matches but to win away to Monaco so convincingly is very pleasing. Moussa Dembele scored both of our goals while Toko Ekambi had a goal disallowed too.

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Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Marcelo (Diomande), Mangala, Emerson, Thiago Mendes (Caqueret), Aouar, Reine-Adelaide (Kadewere), Lucas Paqueta (Cherki), Toko Ekambi, Dembele*

Despite falling behind to the first goal that we have conceded this season we managed to recover and score 6 goals in a match for the 3rd time this season already. Moussa Dembele helped himself to 4 of them while Emerson scored his 3rd of the season - not bad for a left back!

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UEFA Europa League Group K

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Mangala, Emerson*, Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar (Caqueret), Kadewere, Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi, Dembele

We take our strong domestic form into the continent with a fine 4 goal victory away to Antwerp. Moussa Dembele scored twice to continue his strong scoring run but it was Emerson who got the MOM award as he too is in top form.

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Lineup - Lopes, Dubois*, Denayer, Mangala (Mustafi), Emerson (Cornet), Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar, Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele (Kadewere)

Emerson is at it again!!! He had a knock and was about to be substituted when he cut inside to fire in his 4th goal of the season. Lorient are bottom of the table and never looked like causing us too many problems. PSG lost so we are in control of the league at the moment. Shkodran Mustafi made his debut here from the bench.

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UEFA Europa League Group K

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Mustafi, Marcelo, Cornet (Henrique), Thiago Mendes, Pape Cheikh Diop, Reine-Adelaide (Slimani), Caqueret, Cherki, Kadewere*

I rested my first XI here and although we didnt play great we still got the win thanks to a goal from Tino Kadewere, my striker from Zimbabwe.

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SUMMARY

Our magnificent start of the season continued this month as we won all 5 matches. In the league we got an excellent away victory over Monaco before we hit Montpellier for 6 and then Lorient were swotted aside. We are 3pts clear at the top of the table and I couldnt have asked for a better start. We have only conceded 1 goal but have scored 28 such is our good form.

We also won both of our Europa League group matches so we are looking good there too!

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PLAYER OF THE MONTH
EMERSON

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LIGUE 1

​

 

[Klippybo]

Moussa Dembele


NOVEMBER

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Mangala, Cornet, Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar, Reine-Adelaide (Kadewere), Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele*

For the 4th time this season we hit a team for 6. Moussa Dembele scored his 3rd hat-trick of the season but Reine-Adelaide went off injured and will be missing for the rest of the month.

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UEFA Europa League Group K

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer (Mustafi), Mangala, Cornet, Bruno Guimaraes (Pape Cheikh Diop), Aouar*, Kadewere, Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele (Slimani)

Aouar scored his first goal of the season to win us the match and it was a belter too! We have all but qualified for the knockout stages after this victory so I may rest my players for the remaining group fixtures.

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Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Denayer, Mangala, Cornet*, Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar (Pape Cheikh Diop), Kadewere (Cherki), Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi, Dembele (Slimani)

We deserved to win this match but we just couldnt put the ball in the net despite dominating. One of those days methinks.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Mangala (Mustafi), Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes, Thiago Mendes, Kadewere, Aouar (Cherki), Toko Ekambi (Cornet), Dembele*

We get back to winning ways here with a comfortable win. Dembele scored 2 and forced the 3rd as his confidence continues to grow and he recently just won his first French cap.

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UEFA Europa League Group K

Lineup - Lopes*, Sidibe, Mustafi, Marcelo, Cornet (Henrique), Thiago Mendes, Pape Cheikh Diop, Kadewere, Caqueret, Cherki, Slimani

This result wins us the group. They were the better side but didnt have a shot on target while we got awarded a penalty which Kadewere tucked away to give us the victory.

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Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Mangala (Mustafi), Emerson (Cornet), Bruno Guimaraes (Thiago Mendes), Aouar*, Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi, Dembele

This was a hard fought victory which was won by a fine strike from Aouar. We fell behind but responded well and in the end we got the win which our play deserved. Denayer even had a stoppage time goal disallowed.

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SUMMARY

Another month goes by and we are still unbeaten in all competitions!!! Sure we had a goalless draw against FC Metz but other than that we won all of our other matches and as ever we are looking strong at both ends of the field. We have only conceded 3 goals in 13 league fixtures which is some going.

We head into next month full of confidence and we have 2 tough home fixtures against PSG and Marseille to negotiate so if we are still unbeaten at the end of next month we will be onto something special indeed!

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PLAYER OF THE MONTH
MOUSSA DEMBELE

--

LIGUE 1

​

 

[Klippybo]

Leo Dubois


DECEMBER

UEFA Europa League Group K

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Mustafi, Marcelo (Da Silva), Cornet, Thiago Mendes (Bruno Guimaraes), Pape Cheikh Diop, Kadewere*, Caqueret, Cherki (Henrique), Slimani

5 wins out of 5 and amazingly we are 10pts clear of the 2nd placed side Real Sociedad. Theother 2 sides have 4pts so it is all to play for to try and join us in the knockout stages.

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Lineup - Lopes, Dubois*, Denayer, Mangala, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes (Pape Cheikh Diop), Aouar, Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta (Caqueret), Toko Ekambi, Dembele

Very nice. Bordeaux are having a decent season but we dealt with them here easily enough. Dembele is attracting the interest of Man Utd and he scored another 2 goals in front of their watching manager. He has 19 goals in 13 league appearances.

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UEFA Europa League Group K

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Mustafi, Marcelo, Henrique, Caqueret, Pape Cheikh Diop, Kadewere, Cherki, Cornet, Slimani*

We finish off the group stage with a win to make it 6 wins out of 6. Islam Slimani got both of our goals and overall my backups did pretty well.

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Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer (Mustafi), Mangala, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes (Pape Cheikh Diop), Aouar (Caqueret), Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta (Cherki*), Toko Ekambi, Dembele (Kadewere)

We werent at our best here but got the win thanks to a goal from young Rayan Cherki.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer (Mustafi), Mangala (Marcelo), Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes (Thiago Mendes), Pape Cheikh Diop, Reine-Adelaide*, Aouar, Toko Ekambi, Dembele

WHAT A RESULT!!!!!!

Our biggest game of the season so far is won as we edge out PSG in a 7 goal thriller. We fell behind early doors but 3 goals in 6min had us in charge of the game. They pulled a goal back before half-time but Dembele converted a penalty which all but killed the game and although Lionel Messi scored a consolation they couldnt find an equaliser so we move 8pts clear at the top and remain unbeaten.

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Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Mangala, Emerson (Cornet), Bruno Guimaraes (Caqueret), Pape Cheikh Diop (Thiago Mendes), Reine-Adelaide, Aouar, Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele*

Having beaten PSG we were expected to easily beat struggling Brest but it didnt work out that way as we had to score in stoppage time to get the points that our play deserved.

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Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer (Da Silva), Mustafi, Emerson*, Bruno Guimaraes, Pape Cheikh Diop, Reine-Adelaide (Kadewere), Aouar, Toko Ekambi (Cornet), Dembele

We end 2020 with a great home victory over Marseille to maintain our 8pt lead at the top of the table and of course it means that we are still unbeaten in all competitions. Mangala suffered an injury before the match and will be out for 2 months so Mustafi now has a chance to get a run of games in the side.

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SUMMARY

What a month this was!!!! We were absolutely magnificent as we won all of our matches including coming out on top of a 7 goal thriller against PSG and a 3-0 home thumping of Marseille to end the month and the calendar year. Our superb run of form has propelled us to an 8pt lead at the top of the table and now the heat is on for us to convert our strong start into a title winning campaign.

In the Europa League we cruised our group stage and we have been given a decent draw in the next round as we will play the Ukrainian side Zorya Luhansk. Real Madrid are in the competition however so winning it will be a tough ask!

Squad news - Houssem Aouar has signed a new long term contract and is our new highest paid player and now I have to turn my attention onto extending Moussa Dembele's contract. As for the youth intake apparently we are going to be getting a golden generation which is great news!

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PLAYER OF THE MONTH
LEO DUBOIS

--

LIGUE 1

​

 

[Klippybo]

Tino Kadewere


JANUARY

Coupe de France 9th Round

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Marcelo, Mustafi (Da Silva), Henrique, Thiago Mendes (Caqueret), Pape Cheikh Diop*, Kadewere, Cherki, Cornet, Arezo

Matias Arezo was just signed the day before this match and he introduced himself in the best possible way by notching a double against our lower league opponents albeit a local derby.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Denayer, Mustafi, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes (Thiago Mendes), Pape Cheikh Diop (Caqueret), Reine-Adelaide, Aouar (Lucas Paqueta), Toko Ekambi, Dembele*

Moussa Dembele scored a fantastic hat-trick as we get a great away victory against a decent Rennes side.

--

Coupe de France 10th Round

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Mustafi, Diomande, Henrique, Thiago Mendes, Pape Cheikh Diop, Kadewere, Cherki (Caqueret), Cornet*, Lochereau-Pho (Slimani)

My backups got another run out here and did the job albeit we only won by a single goal. I gave a debut to 16y/o striker Yad Locherau-Pho - not an easy name to type let alone say!

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Lineup - Lopes, Dubois*, Diomande, Mustafi, Emerson (Cornet), Bruno Guimaraes (Caqueret), Aouar (Pape Cheikh Diop), Reine-Adelaide (Kadewere), Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi, Dembele (Arezo)

Lens may be bottom of the league but they have some decent players and proved to be tough to beat here as we fell behind and had to score twice late on for us to get the points.

--

Coupe de France 11th Round

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Konate, Mustafi, Henrique, Thiago Mendes, Pape Cheikh Diop, Kadewere, Cherki*, Cornet (Caqueret), Arezo (Slimani)

We march into the quarter-finals with a convincing victory, thanks once again to my backups. Kadewere and Cherki both helped themselves to 2 goals each while their was a debut goal for Ibrahima Konate.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Konate, Emerson (Cornet), Bruno Guimaraes (Thiago Mendes), Aouar, Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele (Kadewere)

AAGGGGHHHHH!!!!!! Strasbourg held us to a draw earlier in the season and they somehow escape with a point here as they levelled with the last kick of the game. We should have killed the game off long before then however and undoubtedly this is our worst performance of the season.

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SUMMARY

We are still unbeaten! This month we had both league matches and cup matches to negotiate as we entered the Coupe de France. We played against 3 sides in the lower divisions so I played my backups and they won all their matches to see us into a quarter-final where we will play FC Nantes. In the league we beat Rennes and Lens but we drew against Strasbourg thanks to a stoppage time goal that we conceded and that allowed PSG to claw 2pts back to cut our lead down to 6pts.

I was busy in the transfer market! I received a £40m offer from Bayern Munich for Aouar but naturally I rejected that but leaving the club was several young players from the reserves who didnt have a future for a pittance and also a couple of backup players for the first team. Veteran defender Marcelo left the club to join Al-Ain for £1.8m as I felt it was best to cash in on him and the same goes for Islam Slimani who joined Krasnodar for £3.4m as he was on a huge wage and was barely featuring in the team.

I brought in 4 players in their place and it is safe to say that the squad is far stronger now than at the beginning of the month. I had already agreed a deal to sign my FM21 favourite Matias Arezo and the 18y/o Uruguayan striker joined us for £2.1m and he immediately scored twice on his debut. He will take up one of the 4 foreigner slots that I am allowed in Ligue 1 and he will have a bright future for us at the club.

Then I made the loan deal of Emerson permanent. He was valued at £30m and Chelsea were willing to accept £13.25m so it was a no brainer to make the move permanent. The Italy international has been superb so far this season and he has 5 goals already from LB which is some going!

I needed another CB with Marcelo leaving so dipped into the loan market to bring in Ibrahima Konate from Liverpool on loan. He scored on his debut and the 21y/o should use his time here to develop and prove his worth to Liverpool or try and secure a long term move here.

Finally on deadline day I pulled off a real coup by bringing in Riyad Mahrez on loan from Manchester City. He is a massive upgrade on Reine-Adelaide in the RW and to bring in a player of his quality shows our intent to hold off PSG in the league and even try and win the Europa League. We can buy him outright for £45m but that isnt going to happen!

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
TINO KADEWERE

--

LIGUE 1

​

 

[HugoCaldeira1234]

View attachment 561356
Tino Kadewere


JANUARY

Coupe de France 9th Round
View attachment 561348

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Marcelo, Mustafi (Da Silva), Henrique, Thiago Mendes (Caqueret), Pape Cheikh Diop*, Kadewere, Cherki, Cornet, Arezo

Matias Arezo was just signed the day before this match and he introduced himself in the best possible way by notching a double against our lower league opponents albeit a local derby.

--

View attachment 561349

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Denayer, Mustafi, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes (Thiago Mendes), Pape Cheikh Diop (Caqueret), Reine-Adelaide, Aouar (Lucas Paqueta), Toko Ekambi, Dembele*

Moussa Dembele scored a fantastic hat-trick as we get a great away victory against a decent Rennes side.

--

Coupe de France 10th Round
View attachment 561350

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Mustafi, Diomande, Henrique, Thiago Mendes, Pape Cheikh Diop, Kadewere, Cherki (Caqueret), Cornet*, Lochereau-Pho (Slimani)

My backups got another run out here and did the job albeit we only won by a single goal. I gave a debut to 16y/o striker Yad Locherau-Pho - not an easy name to type let alone say!

--

View attachment 561351

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois*, Diomande, Mustafi, Emerson (Cornet), Bruno Guimaraes (Caqueret), Aouar (Pape Cheikh Diop), Reine-Adelaide (Kadewere), Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi, Dembele (Arezo)

Lens may be bottom of the league but they have some decent players and proved to be tough to beat here as we fell behind and had to score twice late on for us to get the points.

--

Coupe de France 11th Round
View attachment 561352

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Konate, Mustafi, Henrique, Thiago Mendes, Pape Cheikh Diop, Kadewere, Cherki*, Cornet (Caqueret), Arezo (Slimani)

We march into the quarter-finals with a convincing victory, thanks once again to my backups. Kadewere and Cherki both helped themselves to 2 goals each while their was a debut goal for Ibrahima Konate.

--

View attachment 561354

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Konate, Emerson (Cornet), Bruno Guimaraes (Thiago Mendes), Aouar, Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele (Kadewere)

AAGGGGHHHHH!!!!!! Strasbourg held us to a draw earlier in the season and they somehow escape with a point here as they levelled with the last kick of the game. We should have killed the game off long before then however and undoubtedly this is our worst performance of the season.

--

SUMMARY

We are still unbeaten! This month we had both league matches and cup matches to negotiate as we entered the Coupe de France. We played against 3 sides in the lower divisions so I played my backups and they won all their matches to see us into a quarter-final where we will play FC Nantes. In the league we beat Rennes and Lens but we drew against Strasbourg thanks to a stoppage time goal that we conceded and that allowed PSG to claw 2pts back to cut our lead down to 6pts.

I was busy in the transfer market! I received a £40m offer from Bayern Munich for Aouar but naturally I rejected that but leaving the club was several young players from the reserves who didnt have a future for a pittance and also a couple of backup players for the first team. Veteran defender Marcelo left the club to join Al-Ain for £1.8m as I felt it was best to cash in on him and the same goes for Islam Slimani who joined Krasnodar for £3.4m as he was on a huge wage and was barely featuring in the team.

I brought in 4 players in their place and it is safe to say that the squad is far stronger now than at the beginning of the month. I had already agreed a deal to sign my FM21 favourite Matias Arezo and the 18y/o Uruguayan striker joined us for £2.1m and he immediately scored twice on his debut. He will take up one of the 4 foreigner slots that I am allowed in Ligue 1 and he will have a bright future for us at the club.
View attachment 561368

Then I made the loan deal of Emerson permanent. He was valued at £30m and Chelsea were willing to accept £13.25m so it was a no brainer to make the move permanent. The Italy international has been superb so far this season and he has 5 goals already from LB which is some going!
View attachment 561369

I needed another CB with Marcelo leaving so dipped into the loan market to bring in Ibrahima Konate from Liverpool on loan. He scored on his debut and the 21y/o should use his time here to develop and prove his worth to Liverpool or try and secure a long term move here.
View attachment 561370

Finally on deadline day I pulled off a real coup by bringing in Riyad Mahrez on loan from Manchester City. He is a massive upgrade on Reine-Adelaide in the RW and to bring in a player of his quality shows our intent to hold off PSG in the league and even try and win the Europa League. We can buy him outright for £45m but that isnt going to happen!
View attachment 561371

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PLAYER OF THE MONTH
TINO KADEWERE
View attachment 561355

--

LIGUE 1
View attachment 561361
​

wow you are probaly in first place at Lyon anyways you fix the defence a lot better that peter bosz

i kind feel so sorry from Lyon because they are now fighting from relegation zone and have not spend lot of money on good players

if case Lyon will be relegated to Ligue 2 then Fans will riot it at Jean aulas at some point

 

[Klippybo]

Anthony Lopes


FEBRUARY

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer (Mustafi), Konate, Cornet, Bruno Guimaraes (Caqueret), Aouar, Mahrez*, Lucas Paqueta (Reine-Adelaide), Toko Ekambi, Dembele

A perfect debut for Riyad Mahrez as he scored twice on his return to French football as he showed why I brought him to the club. We have now gone 30 games unbeaten from the start of the season.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer (Mustafi), Konate, Cornet (Henrique), Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar*, Mahrez, Lucas Paqueta, Cherki (Reine-Adelaide), Dembele

We blew Troyes away in the first quarter of an hour as we smashed in 3 goals with Mahrez scoring a double yet again. I am always pleased to see Aouar score as he really should do so far more often given his qualities.

--

Coupe de France Quarter-Final

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer (Mustafi), Konate, Emerson (Sidibe), Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar (Pape Cheikh Diop), Mahrez, Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi*, Dembele

Mahrez scores again as we progress into the semis to set up a tie against Monaco. Moussa Dembele's goal was his 30th goal of the season.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Mustafi, Konate*, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes (Thiago Mendes), Aouar, Mahrez (Reine-Adelaide), Lucas Paqueta (Kadewere), Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele

A sensational solo goal from Moussa Dembele was enough for us to win the Rhone derby. He outmuscled a defender on the halfway line before running through, cutting inside past a defender and curling a shot into the top corner from 16 yards.

--

UEFA Europa League 1st Round 1st Leg

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Denayer, Konate, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar, Mahrez (Reine-Adelaide), Lucas Paqueta (Cherki), Toko Ekambi, Dembele (Kadewere)

Having won all of our group games by largely playing my backups I expected my first team to wipe the floor with Zorya here but they scored with their only shot on goal and that combined with a disallowed goal from Dembele meant we were only able to draw this fixture. We are still huge favourites for the 2nd leg though.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer*, Konate, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes (Thiago Mendes), Aouar (Pape Cheikh Diop), Mahrez (Reine-Adelaide), Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele (Kadewere)

Very nice. Lucas Paqueta, along with Aouar, really should be scoring far more goals than they are so I was pleased to see him strike early doors. Reine-Adelaide came off the bench to get the clincher before Konate scored a comical OG.

--

UEFA Europa League 1st Round 2nd Leg

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Konate, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes (Caqueret), Aouar*, Mahrez (Reine-Adelaide), Lucas Paqueta (Cherki), Toko Ekambi, Dembele

I dont know what has happened to Riyad Mahrez. After scoring 4 goals in his first 2 matches he has been terrible in his last couple of performances and Reine-Adelaide has come off the bench in place of him to score. Food for thought.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Denayer (Mangala), Konate*, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar (Pape Chiekh Diop), Mahrez (Reine-Adelaide), Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele

I stuck with Mahrez here but he was hopeless again! We still managed to get a decent away victory though.

--

SUMMARY

As I keep on saying every month - we are still unbeaten!!!!! We were fighting battles in 3 fronts this month and we won all but one of our fixtures so I cant complain. We won all 5 of our league fixtures but alas PSG also won all of their matches so our lead at the top has not been extended unfortunately. Sure we are unbeaten and in a prime position to win the league but the away fixtures against PSG and Marseille towards the end of the season already seem to be likely the defining moments of the season.

In the Europa League we knocked out Zorya Luhansk and we have a really tough tie against AC Milan in the next round while in the Coupe de France we managed to beat Nantes and have a semi-final tie against Monaco to look forward to with PSG already lurking in the final.

Youth intake and an apparent golden generation arrives next month!!

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
IBRAHIMA KONATE

--

LIGUE 1​

 

[Klippybo]

wow you are probaly in first place at Lyon anyways you fix the defence a lot better that peter bosz

i kind feel so sorry from Lyon because they are now fighting from relegation zone and have not spend lot of money on good players

if case Lyon will be relegated to Ligue 2 then Fans will riot it at Jean aulas at some point

Defensively unless there are some top youngsters lurking in the wings that FM21 havent spotted then they are woefully short.

 

[Klippybo]

Bruno Guimaraes


MARCH

UEFA Europa League 2nd Round 1st Leg

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Konate*, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes (Caqueret), Aouar (Pape Cheikh Diop), Mahrez (Reine-Adelaide), Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Kadewere (Arezo)

WOW!!!! I didnt expect this result and tbh our performance didnt merit it as AC Milan were the better side but they missed a load of chances and it was only when I made my subs that we offered a threat and 2 teenagers, Arezo and Cherki, struck to give us a fantastic away victory with Cherki striking via a free-kick from 31 yards. Riyad Mahrez - ****.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois* (Sidibe), Denayer, Konate, Emerson (Mahrez), Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar, Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta (Cherki), Toko Ekambi (Cornet), Kadewere (Dembele)

I had had enough of Riyad Mahrez's **** performances so Jeff Reine-Adelaide came back in and he played well. Dubois is our captain and is having a great season and he opened the scoring while Cornet is a valuable squad member who scored the 2nd.

--

UEFA Europa League 2nd Round 2nd Leg

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Konate*, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes (Thiago Mendes), Aouar, Reine-Adelaide (Mahrez), Lucas Paqueta (Caqueret), Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele (Kadewere)

Our first defeat of the season!!!!!!!

It doesnt matter however as we go through on away goals. This was a very nervy match and we were unlucky to lose tbh but they were unlucky to lose the 1st leg and in the end Cherki's amazing free-kick was the deciding factor.

We went 40 games unbeaten before defeat here - some achievement.

--

Coupe de France Semi-Final

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Denayer, Konate, Emerson*, Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar, Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta (Mahrez), Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele

A late goal from Emerson was enough to see us through into the final where we will come up against PSG. The games are mounting up so it will be interesting to see how we end the season.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer*, Konate, Emerson (Sidibe), Bruno Guimaraes (Thiago Mendes), Aouar (Pape Cheikh Diop), Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta (Cherki), Toko Ekambi, Dembele (Arezo)

Nice have some decent players and a strong squad for this league but they have really struggled this season surprisingly. We won easily enough here and Dembele also had a goal chalked off.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Denayer, Mangala (Mustafi), Emerson (Henrique), Bruno Guimaraes (Caqueret), Aouar*, Reine-Adelaide (Mahrez), Lucas Paqueta (Kadewere), Cherki, Dembele

We keep on winning! PSG won the day before so the pressure was on us to get all 3pts and we did just that thanks to an early Houssem Aouar goal. My captain, Leo Dubois was given a weeks rest here and missed his first league game of the season as a result which means only Lopes and Aouar are ever presents now.

--

SUMMARY

Well it took until mid March but we finally lost a game this season when AC Milan turned us over 1-0 at home in the Europa League however we still went through on away goals so do I count it as a defeat? In the quarter-finals we will play Spurs who on paper are the toughest team left in the competition alongside Sevilla maybe so if we can progress into the semis I fancy our chances.

We progressed to the Coupe de France final by beating Monaco 1-0 in a tight match and PSG are lying in wait in the final but it is our title battle that is the main thing that I am focusing on. We remain 6pts clear as both of us keep on winning! We are still unbeaten in the league and defensively we have been amazing which seems to be the difference between the 2 sides - not that they have been bad!

As for the youth intake I was promised a golden generation and while I didnt get the French version of Aitor Herrera or even a player worthy of a screenshot I did get about a dozen prospects who were signed up. Normally I sign 5 or 6 but there was a large crop of players worthy of a deal so that was nice and bodes well for the future.

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
ANTHONY LOPES

--

LIGUE 1

​

 

[Klippybo]

Jason Denayer


APRIL

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer (Mangala), Konate, Emerson, Pape Cheikh Diop (Thiago Mendes), Aouar, Reine-Adelaide (Mahrez), Lucas Paqueta (Cherki), Toko Ekambi, Dembele (Kadewere)

Its safe to say that this match didnt go according to plan as we drop 2pts here to Angers. We dominated throughout but couldnt find a goal and as a result our lead is cut down to 4pts. The draw does however secure our place in next seasons Champions League and as a result I have been handed a transfer budget of £35m for next season.

--

UEFA Europa League Quarter-Final 1st Leg

Lineup - Lopes*, Dubois, Denayer, Konate, Emerson (Cornet), Pape Cheikh Diop (Thiago Mendes), Aouar (Caqueret), Mahrez, Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele (Arezo)

Another no score draw but this one is much better. Sure we didnt get the away goal but I am confident heading into the 2nd leg at home. Dembele's form has fallen off a cliff and I put Mahrez back in and he did ok while Aouar is shattered alongside Dubois and Emerson so we will have some selection issues coming up soon.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Denayer (Diomande), Konate (Mangala), Henrique, Pape Cheikh Diop, Aouar (Caqueret), Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta (Cherki*), Toko Ekambi (Cornet), Dembele

THANK YOU MARSEILLE!!!!!!

They thumped PSG 3-1 so we move 7pts clear at the top of the table with this win and with 7 games to play we are in pole position to win the league. Even if we lose to PSG and Marseille and PSG we win all their games we will still emerge as champions.

--

UEFA Europa League Quarter-Final 2nd Leg

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Denayer, Konate, Henrique (Cornet), Pape Cheikh Diop, Aouar (Caqueret), Reine-Adelaide (Mahrez), Lucas Paqueta*, Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele

Wonderful!!!! We put in a top performance here as we wiped the floor with Spurs to storm into the semi-finals. Dembele struck twice, Lucas Paqueta scored a screamer and then we were gifted an own goal in our favour. Fantastic. We will face Leicester City in the next round.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer*, Konate, Cornet (Sidibe), Pape Cheikh Diop, Aouar (Caqueret), Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta (Mahrez), Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele (Kadewere)

We keep grinding out the results!!! Sure we remain unbeaten but in the league this is our 7th clean sheet in a row which is pretty impressive!

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Mangala (Mustafi), Konate, Cornet*, Pape Cheikh Diop (Bruno Guimaraes), Caqueret, Reine-Adelaide (Mahrez), Lucas Paqueta (Kadewere), Cherki, Dembele (Arezo)

The title is all but ours now as despite struggling to beat Clermont, PSG lost away to Reims so we are now 10pts clear with 5 games to go!!! Another clean sheet.

--

Coupe de France Final

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Denayer, Konate, Cornet, Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar, Mahrez (Kadewere), Lucas Paqueta (Cherki), Toko Ekambi, Dembele

Gutted!!!!

This was a horrible final with little to no highlights. Neither side created a chance but they were awarded a penalty when Mbappe was fouled and they converted it and that was enough for them to claim the trophy. Hugely disappointing although we didnt deserve to lose as both teams were as bad as each other.

--

UEFA Europa League Semi-Final 1st Leg

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Denayer, Konate, Cornet (Henrique*), Bruno Guimaraes, Aouar, Mahrez (Reine-Adelaide), Lucas Paqueta (Cherki), Toko Ekambi, Dembele (Arezo)

Of all the unlikely heroes for us to have Henrique would be bottom of the pile as he came off the bench to score a late equaliser and also claim the MOM award. We were the better side but Leicester were ruthless as they scored with their only shots on target.

--

SUMMARY

This month saw us all but win the league as PSG lost twice while we dug out some victories. By no means have we been at our best but we didnt concede any goals and just did enough to win the games and we are 7pts clear with 5 games remaining with one being a game in hand. It is done.

Alas PSG got a bit of revenge before the event by edging us out 1-0 in the Coupe de France final. It was a horrible final and if any match was to be decided on penalties after extra-time this was it but alas they got a penalty in normal time and so they duly picked up the trophy.

In the Europa League we blew away Spurs at home as after drawing 0-0 away we thrashed them 4-0 at home as we stormed into the semis and then we faced Leicester and we drew 2-2 away from home which was a good result.

We go into the final month knowing that the league is all but won so our focus is now transferred onto the Europa League but on the other hand we have gone unbeaten in the league this season and if we were to negotiate the final 6 league games of the season without losing that would be a major achievement.

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
JASON DENAYER

--

LIGUE 1

​

 

[Klippybo]

Karl Toko Ekambi


MAY

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Mustafi, Mangala, Cornet, Bruno Guimaraes (Thiago Mendes), Aouar (Pape Cheikh Diop), Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta (Caqueret), Cherki, Dembele*

Our 9th clean sheet in a row in the league as we move within 1 win away from clinching the league title.

--

UEFA Europa League Semi-Final 2nd Leg

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Mangala, Cornet, Bruno Guimaraes*, Aouar (Pape Cheikh Diop), Reine-Adelaide (Mahrez), Lucas Paqueta (Caqueret), Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele (Arezo)

We reach the final with this fine victory over Leicester. We took the lead when Bruno Guimaraes hammered home a half-volley into the top corner from 30 yards to get his first goal of the season and what a way to do it!!! Maxence Caqueret sealed things in stoppage time and we will play Lazio in the final.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Denayer, Mangala (Mustafi), Cornet (Emerson), Bruno Guimaraes (Pape Cheikh Diop), Aouar (Caqueret), Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi, Dembele

Our run of clean sheets in the league ends as we concede 2 goals here but we didnt get beat so we are still unbeaten however a win would have sealed the title so we move onto the next game - PSG away.

--

Lineup - Lopes*, Sidibe, Denayer, Konate, Cornet, Bruno Guimaraes (Caqueret), Aouar (Pape Cheikh Diop), Reine-Adelaide (Mahrez), Cherki, Toko Ekambi (Emerson), Dembele (Arezo)

We were minutes away from claiming the title and being on track to having an unbeaten league campaign but alas it was not to be as Bernat forced the ball home from close range to condemn us to defeat. We deserved a point but it was not to be.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Mangala, Konate, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes, Pape Cheikh Diop*, Reine-Adelaide (Mahrez), Cherki, Cornet, Arezo (Kadawere)

CHAMPIONS!!!!!!!!

The Ligue 1 title is ours as my much changed side come from behind to beat Rennes. It was a former Lyon player, Martin Terrier, who put them in front but Cornet levelled and Ibrahima Konate headed us in front and we held onto the lead. I will now rest my first team players in preparation for the Europa League final.

--

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Mangala, Mustafi (Diomande), Henrique, Thiago Mendes, Pape Cheikh Diop, Kadewere, Cherki*, Cornet, Arezo

This game meant nothing. I played my backups and we got a point with Arezo scoring his first league goal for the club. We suffered no injuries so everyone should be fit for the Europa League final.

--

UEFA Europa League Final

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois*, Denayer, Konate, Emerson (Cornet), Bruno Guimaraes, Pape Cheikh Diop (Caqueret), Reine-Adelaide (Mahrez), Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi, Dembele

WE WIN THE EUROPA LEAGUE!!!!!!

I expected Lazio to be much tougher opposition than they proved to be as we trounce them to win the Europa League. Moussa Dembele had us in front at half time with an early goal and then we got 2 in 5min to kill the game off with Dembele grabbing his 2nd and my captain, Leo Dubois putting the game beyond their reach. The only downside to the final was that Houssem Aouar and Rayan Cherki missed the game because they were away on international duty.

--

SUMMARY

The season ends in fine fashion as not only did we clinch our first league title in 13 years but we also won the Europa League to boot! Alas we didnt manage to end the league season unbeaten as PSG defeated us 1-0 thanks to a late goal from Bernat so that was a shame. We ended up securing the title with a comeback victory over Rennes and in the end we won the title by 3pts but we were 10pts clear not so long ago.

In the Europa League we dealt with Leicester City in the semis and that meant we went into the final to play Lazio and we hammered them 3-0 with Dembele grabbing a double and my captain fantastic, Leo Dubois, scoring a screamer for our 3rd and therefor we claim the clubs 1st European trophy.

Now we head into the summer with much work to do!

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
MOUSSA DEMBELE

--

LIGUE 1

​

 

[HugoCaldeira1234]

View attachment 561514
Karl Toko Ekambi


MAY

View attachment 561493

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Mustafi, Mangala, Cornet, Bruno Guimaraes (Thiago Mendes), Aouar (Pape Cheikh Diop), Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta (Caqueret), Cherki, Dembele*

Our 9th clean sheet in a row in the league as we move within 1 win away from clinching the league title.

--

UEFA Europa League Semi-Final 2nd Leg
View attachment 561503

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois, Denayer, Mangala, Cornet, Bruno Guimaraes*, Aouar (Pape Cheikh Diop), Reine-Adelaide (Mahrez), Lucas Paqueta (Caqueret), Toko Ekambi (Cherki), Dembele (Arezo)

We reach the final with this fine victory over Leicester. We took the lead when Bruno Guimaraes hammered home a half-volley into the top corner from 30 yards to get his first goal of the season and what a way to do it!!! Maxence Caqueret sealed things in stoppage time and we will play Lazio in the final.

--

View attachment 561505

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Denayer, Mangala (Mustafi), Cornet (Emerson), Bruno Guimaraes (Pape Cheikh Diop), Aouar (Caqueret), Reine-Adelaide, Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi, Dembele

Our run of clean sheets in the league ends as we concede 2 goals here but we didnt get beat so we are still unbeaten however a win would have sealed the title so we move onto the next game - PSG away.

--

View attachment 561506

Lineup - Lopes*, Sidibe, Denayer, Konate, Cornet, Bruno Guimaraes (Caqueret), Aouar (Pape Cheikh Diop), Reine-Adelaide (Mahrez), Cherki, Toko Ekambi (Emerson), Dembele (Arezo)

We were minutes away from claiming the title and being on track to having an unbeaten league campaign but alas it was not to be as Bernat forced the ball home from close range to condemn us to defeat. We deserved a point but it was not to be.

--

View attachment 561507

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois (Sidibe), Mangala, Konate, Emerson, Bruno Guimaraes, Pape Cheikh Diop*, Reine-Adelaide (Mahrez), Cherki, Cornet, Arezo (Kadawere)

CHAMPIONS!!!!!!!!

The Ligue 1 title is ours as my much changed side come from behind to beat Rennes. It was a former Lyon player, Martin Terrier, who put them in front but Cornet levelled and Ibrahima Konate headed us in front and we held onto the lead. I will now rest my first team players in preparation for the Europa League final.

--

View attachment 561510

Lineup - Lopes, Sidibe, Mangala, Mustafi (Diomande), Henrique, Thiago Mendes, Pape Cheikh Diop, Kadewere, Cherki*, Cornet, Arezo

This game meant nothing. I played my backups and we got a point with Arezo scoring his first league goal for the club. We suffered no injuries so everyone should be fit for the Europa League final.

--

UEFA Europa League Final
View attachment 561511

Lineup - Lopes, Dubois*, Denayer, Konate, Emerson (Cornet), Bruno Guimaraes, Pape Cheikh Diop (Caqueret), Reine-Adelaide (Mahrez), Lucas Paqueta, Toko Ekambi, Dembele

WE WIN THE EUROPA LEAGUE!!!!!!

I expected Lazio to be much tougher opposition than they proved to be as we trounce them to win the Europa League. Moussa Dembele had us in front at half time with an early goal and then we got 2 in 5min to kill the game off with Dembele grabbing his 2nd and my captain, Leo Dubois putting the game beyond their reach. The only downside to the final was that Houssem Aouar and Rayan Cherki missed the game because they were away on international duty.

--

SUMMARY

The season ends in fine fashion as not only did we clinch our first league title in 13 years but we also won the Europa League to boot! Alas we didnt manage to end the league season unbeaten as PSG defeated us 1-0 thanks to a late goal from Bernat so that was a shame. We ended up securing the title with a comeback victory over Rennes and in the end we won the title by 3pts but we were 10pts clear not so long ago.

In the Europa League we dealt with Leicester City in the semis and that meant we went into the final to play Lazio and we hammered them 3-0 with Dembele grabbing a double and my captain fantastic, Leo Dubois, scoring a screamer for our 3rd and therefor we claim the clubs 1st European trophy.

Now we head into the summer with much work to do!

--

PLAYER OF THE MONTH
MOUSSA DEMBELE
View attachment 561513

--

LIGUE 1
View attachment 561512​

wow congrats from you winning the league and EL with Lyon and going to play Champions League Next Season
so what is plans from selling and buying players do you want to challenge PSG again from title with super players right there

 

[Klippybo]

wow congrats from you winning the league and EL with Lyon and going to play Champions League Next Season
so what is plans from selling and buying players do you want to challenge PSG again from title with super players right there

There wont be radical changes I wouldnt think. Having said that I need a couple of wingers and I am not happy with my defence despite their great performances from last season. I have about £40m to spend

 

[Klippybo]

END OF SEASON POST

My first season is done and it was a cracker!!! We won the league and the Europa League and were denied a treble by PSG as we lost in the Coupe de France final. Coming into the season I was just hoping to qualify for the Champions League so we have exceeded those expectations for sure!

In the league we only lost 1 match - to PSG - with 3 games to go so we were so close to being unbeaten. We led from the start and at one point had a 10pt lead but in the end we won it by 3pts. Our defensive record was outstanding and we kept 25 clean sheets which is fairly incredible considering we didnt have any world class players there. Going forward we scored 86 goals which is decent enough but while Moussa Dembele scored 33 goals our next highest scorer had 6 goals and that needs to improve next season.

In the Coupe de France we played a few lower league sides before things got tougher and after edging out Nantes and Monaco we fell short in the final against PSG.

Continentally we won the Europa League with some fine performances. We won all 6 of our group matches and then knocked out Zorya Luhansk before things stepped up a bit. AC Milan were defeated on away goals, Spurs were humped 4-0 in the 2nd leg as we stormed into the semis where we beat Leicester City 4-2 on aggregate. In the final we came up against Lazio and we beat them 3-0 to claim our first European trophy.

My B team easily won their league but they are not allowed to get promoted while my U19 side also claimed their title.

--

LIGUE 1

--

SQUAD

Goalkeepers - Anthony Lopes played all 59 matches and he was superb. He kept 39 clean sheets and was undoubtedly one of our best and most consistent performers. My backup keeper didnt get a look in and lets hope that continues!

Defenders - My captain, Leo Dubois, had a magnificent season. He contributed going forward with 4 goals and 11 assists and had the highest average rating in my squad. He ended the season in fine fashion by scoring a screamer in the Europa League final too. Djibril Sidibe - who I signed from AS Monaco - did get a few chances as his backup but couldnt displace my captain.

On the left hand side Emerson started the season brilliantly before tailing off after I paid £13.25m to bring him to the club permanently in January but 6 goals from LB is decent enough. Maxwel Cornet was his backup and he impressed me and he also scored 6 goals but he also played a few games on the LW.

In the centre of defence Jason Denayer was the one player who kept his position. He played decently enough considering his defensive partner was always chopping and changing. I signed Eliaquim Mangala and Shkodran Mustafi in the summer on free transfers and it was the former who started the season before he got injured. Mustafi then got a chance but in January I moved to bring in Ibrahima Konate on loan from Liverpool and he made the spot his own and did brilliantly and I may look to bring him in permanently in the summer if the asking price isnt rediculous.

Midfielders - Bruno Guimaraes and Houssem Aouar were my go to partnership in the CM positions. Bruno Guimaraes was the more defensive of the 2 and he scored only 1 goal but it was the goal of the season as he crashed in a half-volley from 30 yards against Leicester in the Europa League semis. Aouar had a great season and was our most creative player however he only scored 5 goals and that must improve going forward. Pape Cheikh Diop was my main backup in midfield but Thaigo Mendes and Caqueret also contributed.

The same goes for Lucas Paqueta who despite playing in a more advanced midfield role he too only contributed 5 goals which is just not good enough. He is a decent player but really needs to kick on with his development and contribute more going forward.

Karl Toko Ekambi was my left winger and he did ok as did Jeff Reine-Adelaide on the right hand side. I did bring in Riyad Mahrez to play RW on loan in January and after scoring 4 goals in his first 2 games he was absolutely hopeless so that will need to be addressed in the summer. Rayan Cherki is still only 17y/o but he had a decent season. Although mainly used as a sub he did pop up with some important goals including a stunning winner against AC Milan at the San Siro as he fired in a free-kick.

Forwards - Moussa Dembele was the main man as he smashed in 41 goals. He scored 33 in the league as he led the way in the scoring charts and he ended up winning the European Golden Boot Award. Alongside Aouar he got international recognition with France and there are some huge clubs interested in taking him away from us. Kadewere was my main backup and he had a few starts although admittedly he mainly played on the RW.

In January I brought in Matias Arezo and he scored a couple of goals and he needs to kick on next season.

My Player of the Season - Leo Dubois
My Young Player of the Season - Rayan Cherki
Must Improve - Lucas Paqueta
Donkey of the Season - Riyad Mahrez

--

SUMMER PLANS

There will be a bit of player movement. I have no incoming deals arranged but there will be a few departures including the end of their loan spells for Konate and Mahrez. With a starting transfer budget of £40m I have a bit of room to work with and hopefully I can top that up by a decent amount to help me strengthen. A CB and 2 wingers (one for each side) are certainly my priorities for recruiting.​

 

[Klippybo]

PRE-SEASON POST

This summer did not go according to plan at all! At the time of writing (23rd of July - Super Cup day v PSG) I am nowhere near in completing my transfer business. I wanted to sign a CB, RW and LW and have barely done that!!! Well sort of.

It all hinged on the collapse of 2 deals. I accepted a £15m bid for Mangala and a £25m bid for Mustafi but the arseholes rejected the moves away so just when I thought I was doubling my transfer budget I was back to £40m but just before they rejected their moves I spent almost half of it on one player so basically it all went horribly wrong.

I have some unhappy squad members (Pape Cheikh Diop and Sidibe), some that I want rid of and overall I am not convinced that we are stronger than last term which is a worry as naturally PSG have went out and splashed the cash this summer.

Here are my departures.

--

PLAYERS OUT

Obviously the loans of Mahrez and Konate ended so they are gone and in Mahrez's case hopefully forgotten. I sold several squad players. Tino Kadewere joined Rennes for £5.5m, Thiago Mendes left for Freiburg for £5.25m while Damien Da Silva (Nice £2.2m), Henrique (Brest £1.6m) and several B team players left for minimal fees.

Matias Arezo left to join FC Kobenhavn on loan for £1.2m so he will get regular starts and he will surely develop further.

--

PLAYERS IN

I managed to bring back Ibrahima Konate on loan thankfully and all we are paying is his £34k a week wage which is pretty decent. He was brilliant when he came into the side last season and hopefully he will carry on that form this season.

My big summer signing saw a return to the club for a young player that came up through the ranks with Lyon before leaving. Amine Gouiri has rejoined us from Nice for a fee of £18m. He will challenge for the LW spot and also be my backup striker probably so the 21y/o will get plenty of opportunities to impress and hopefully he will develop into a top player.

My director of football then made moves for my next signing as he paid £4.1m (£6m) for Thiago Almada of Velez Sarsfield. The young Argentinian is a quality player and he will provide competition for all of the attacking midfield spots.

My only other signing was a youngster from Real Madrid on a free and his name be Theo!

--

SQUAD & SEASON AIMS

Well naturally I am not happy with my squad at the minute. We definitely need a RW and I have £25m to go and get one. I have looked at a few players and will try and narrow down the list before we start the league campaign (against PSG!!). A CM or even a striker would be nice too but we can get by without strengthening the side in those positions if we blow our £25m on a RW.

Squad wise it is as you were pretty much. Gouiri will be backup striker or first choice LW depending on form and other than that the only other change was the promotion of 17y/o striker Yad Lochereau-Pho who looks like a great prospect.

The aims for the season is to win the league again but that will be tough. Everything else is up in the air as I dont have any real expectations in the cups!

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[Rocco17]

Great story mate, I'm enjoying following it. Congrats on a brilliant first season, hopefully there's more to come.

Btw, try scout Benjamin Garre for RW.