Rafaelle D'Aniello - Building a Legacy

Good move for Rafaelle, looking forward to seeing how you improve their current position.
 
Decent squad, Rafaelle has come a long way! Surprised you didn't take the Dortmund job to be honest! Hopefully you can turn Sunderland's season around.
 
Timmzeh said:
Decent squad, Rafaelle has come a long way! Surprised you didn't take the Dortmund job to be honest! Hopefully you can turn Sunderland's season around.
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The Dortmund came before we had won the Copa Libertadores and I didn't really want to move till we had won it.

I probably won't have took it anyway to be fair, as I didn't want to go to a top team where I'd be challenging on all fronts pretty much straight away.
 

Sunderland AFC
October + November - 2023

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Fixtures:

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Rafaelle started his tenure at Sunderland with hard fought 1-1 draw at home to then 3rd place Everton, with local lad Craig Healy bagging an 80th minute equalizer. Another draw, this time away at Aston Villa, then followed before back to back wins against London sides QPR and Crystal Palace left Rafaelle unbeaten after 4 games in charge. However, it may be 9 years into the future but it appears Hull are still a bogey team for Sunderland as Hull scored a last minute winner to take the game 2-1. Sunderland bounced back with a comfortable 2-0 win at home to Huddersfield and this left Rafaelle with 11 points from his first 6 games in charge, a marked improvement on the 0 points from the first 6 games without Rafaelle!

League Table:

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From the bottom of the table when he took over, Rafaelle has led his side to 16th and they now lie 4 points clear of the relegation zone. Hopefully Sunderland fans will now be looking up the table rather than over their shoulders...

Player Stats:

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French winger Afkir, signed by Gus Poyet in the summer from Everton for £4,200,000, has been the standout player so far this season with 6 assists and 3 MOM's in 10 starts. Both centre midfielders are popping up with goals and Craig Healy is leading the line very well, although Rafaelle still feels like there is more to come from him.

Other News:

1) Rafaelle has also been busy sorting out a lot of different things behind the scenes at the club. As well as bringing in numerous new coaches and scouts, he also persuaded his assistant manager from Cruzeiro Mauro Rosales to join him as his assistant manager, replacing Peter Crouch in the role. Sorry Crouchy! Rafaelle also convinced the board to improve the youth recruitment and junior coaching at the club.

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2) Young academy graduate midfielder Michael Provett won Premier League Young Player of the Month for November.

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3) Rafaelle has also been busy sorting out reinforcements for his squad for the January transfer window. Blessed with a strong knowledge of the Brazilian market from his time at Cruzeiro, both of his incoming transfers are coming from Brazilian clubs. Firstly, he knew that the contract of his defensive midfielder at Cruzeiro Gomes' contract was expiring at the end of the calender year and so decided to throw a £2,800,000 bid towards Cruzeiro which was accepted (Couldn't approach him on a free for some reason, maybe his age?). Initially Gomes was reluctant to join Rafaelle but after Rafaelle convinced him he could become a legend at the club, he agreed to a £70,000 a week deal to join the Premier League club. He will take over from a 34 year old Liam Bridcutt in the defensive midfielder role! Following this, Rafaelle moved to secure the signature of a new first choice goalkeeper for a total fee of £6,500,000 and at just 19 years of age, Izzo could be first choice keeper at Sunderland for many years!

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Next update will be a 1 month review of just December as there are 7 league games to play, and I'll update as to how Cruzeiro finished their season and got on in the Club World Championship. I'm going to update the post under the original post with the up to date save history so far if anyone is interested in taking a look...​
 
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Good work mate, great improvement already and two decent signings too. :D
 

Sunderland AFC
December - 2023

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Fixtures:

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Rafaelle built upon an impressive first two months in charge of Sunderland with a very impressive December, taking 15 points from a possible 21. The two defeats came away at Chelsea and Manchester City, and Rafaelle even rested a few players in the Chelsea game in preparation for his first Tyne-Wear derby. The highlight of the period was definitely the 5-4 win away at Anfield, in a game where Liverpool just didn't know when to give up.

League Table:

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Up to 11th with 26 points off of 19 games, meaning Rafaelle is averaging 2 points a game since he took charge at Sunderland. Sitting only 6 points behind 7th, a possible Europa League qualification is starting to enter Rafaelle's mind if he can keep up his sides form in the 2nd half of the season.

Player Stats:

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French winger Afkir continued to be the top performer throughout December, however the awful news is that he broke his foot against Chelsea and will likely miss the rest of the season! When you look at just how important he has been so far this season, it is a massive blow for Rafaelle...

Other News:

1) Rafaelle's ex-club Cruzeiro managed to win the Brazilian League from the strong position he left them in and they also won the Club World Championship, beating Schalke 2-1 after extra time! Nice to see Rafaelle's legacy living on but he is slightly jealous that the Club World Championship could have been his!

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Next update will be a January update, including any potential transfers dealings which may be coming in or out of the club.​
 
Disappointing to miss out on the Club World Championship but Rafaelle seems to be working wonders at the stadium of light!

Interested to see how you fair in the market.
 
Lippo255 said:
Disappointing to miss out on the Club World Championship but Rafaelle seems to be working wonders at the stadium of light!

Interested to see how you fair in the market.
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Will probably only be able to get loans/bosmans unless we make a big sale. Can't get anyone to take Connor Wickham and his 105k a week wages off my hand!
 
Wow, amazing form mate, brilliant win at Anfield! That injury is a huge blow, hopefully you can continue this brilliant form despite Afkir's injury.
 

Sunderland AFC
January - 2024

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Fixtures:

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January was probably the weakest month in charge for Rafaelle so far, managing to accumulate just 6 points from 5 games and losing his first North East derby 3-0 on New Years day. The 3-2 defeat at home to Stoke was particularly disappointing as Sunderland were 2-0 up in the 83rd minute before 3 goals in 9 minutes from Stoke turned the game on it's head. In the FA Cup, he led his team past Championship side Blackpool in the 3rd round and then masterminded a 2-1 victory at home to Arsenal in the 4th round. Either Sheffield Wednesday or Burnley, both of the Championship, await in the 5th round, leaving a good chance of reaching the quarter final.

League Table:

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Any chance of relegation appears to be gone now (barring an NUFC/ John Carver style collapse) and the focus of the 2nd half of the season will be attempting to push into the top half. If you take out the 6 games where Rafaelle wasn't in charge, Sunderland's record this season would read 10-2-6.

Player Stats:

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It appears the last game of the month is cursed for Sunderland as in December and now January one of their best players have got injured in the last game with injuries ruling them out for the season. This month it was the turn of centre midfielder Michael Provett, who has 8 goals and 6 assists in 21 games. Young academy graduate winger Bob Hamilton has been getting a lot more 1st team football recently and his performances having been impressing Rafaelle.

Other News:

1) Rafaelle really struggled to move on any of the unwanted players in January, with just Will Grigg leaving for 100k to Sheffield United. Unfortunately, this means Connor Wickham and his 105k a week wages remain at the club (taking up 12% of the clubs total wage bill) for probably another 2 seasons! This meant the club could only afford to bring in a couple of loans to plug gaps in the squad, with Jacob Murphy and Jerry de Jong joining from Norwich and Chelsea respectively. Rafaelle also secured the bosman signing of a backup centre back for next season from Real Madrid who will join in July.

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2) Rafaelle convinced the board to increase the youth facilities, highlighting the impact that many youth academy graduates were currently having in the first team.

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Next update will be a February and March review, with not much to play for in the league, will Rafaelle be able to lead his side into the latter stages of the FA Cup?

​
 

Sunderland AFC
February + March - 2024

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Fixtures:

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Overall, the past two months have been pretty successful for Rafaelle considering the injuries to key players. Missing both first choice centre midfielders and their first choice right winger, Sunderland were still able to go 4-2-2 from their 7 league games including yet another victory over Arsenal. The 2-0 defeat at Huddersfield and the 1-1 draw at home to Palace was disappointing, but it was the case of taking the rough with the smooth with the missing players in the squad.

League Table:

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11th place with 6 games to go, the target for Rafaelle has to be to finish in the top half. European qualification isn't completely out of the picture as they are only 5 points behind 7th place Stoke, but with the injuries to key players and Man City, Tottenham, Chelsea and Liverpool to play it looks very unlikely!

Player Stats:

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3 of the best performers this season out injured, but Jacob Murphy has certainly looked worth the £250,000 a month loan fee Rafaelle chose to pay for him as cover to Afkir. Star stiker Craig Healy ended an 18 match goal drought with a goal in the last game, and with a value of £17,500,000, Rafaelle may choose to move him on in the summer if he needs to raise funds to invest in the squad.

Other News:

1) The first youth intake at SAFC since Rafaelle took charge produced a couple of decent players, who may have a chance of making it at the club if they reach their potential.

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2) The board increased the percentage of transfer revenue to 100%, which should allow a bit more room for manoeuvring in the transfer market over the summer.

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3) Centre back Phillip Vincent-Day won the Premier League young player of the month for March, meaning an SAFC player has won the award in 4 of the 5 whole months since Rafaelle took charge.

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Next update will go over the final 2 months of the season, where will Sunderland end up in Rafaelle's first season in charge?​
 
Somehow managed to miss a few updates and next thing I know you're at Sunderland! Think it's a good challenge for Rafaelle, can't have been easy to leave Brazil but definitely keen to see how he gets on in the Prem. Best of luck :)
 

Sunderland AFC
April and May - 2024

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Fixtures:

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Wow, I really didn't see this coming. 6 wins from the final 6 league games this season, including home wins over Man City, Chelsea and Liverpool and an away win at Spurs. Over the period they scored a total of 22 goals and conceded just 1! The question is though, was that enough to secure European qualification?

League Table:

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It certainly was. It was nearly enough for Champions League qualification, but in the end Rafaelle's side finished 2 points behind Everton and Chelsea in 6th place. I'd say qualifying for the Champions League would have been a season too early and the Europa League will be a good tester for the club next season.

Player Stats:

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In the end it proved to be a great decision to bring in Murphy on loan from League 1 Norwich, whilst young academy graduates Moth and Hamilton had great second halves of the season after working their way into the team under Rafaelle. There was a slight lack of goals from main striker Craig Healy but he did finish comfortably as the top assist maker.

Other News:

1) Rafaelle managed to win the Manager of the Year award after leading Sunderland from rock bottom with 0 points from 6 games to 6th place on 64 points.

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2) The success Rafaelle has had this season has set him up to be rewarded with a massive £49,000,000 transfer budget to play with over the summer. There may be a little adjusting to do with that but Rafaelle will have plenty of money to build a squad capable of challenging for the top 4.

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Next update will be a 2024/2025 season preview. There's a big summer of rebuilding ahead as Rafaelle has his first Summer at the club to try and build his own squad to get the club challenging for honours...

​
 

Sunderland AFC
Pre-Season + August - 2024

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Transfers:

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Rafaelle had a very busy summer trying to mould the Sunderland squad into his squad. With a net spend of £57,800,000, Rafaelle decided to throw £50,000,000 at his old club Cruzeiro for 3 new players.

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On top of that, he also spent £27,500,000 on a new first choice French striker from Lens after selling Craig Healy to Southampton for £25,000,000. Last year's loanee's Jerry De Jong and Jacob Murphy rejoined the club for £9,000,000 and on another loan respectively. Rafaelle also signed a backup defensive midfielder/ CB from Valencia for £6,500,000.

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Finally, a couple of backup players were brought in on free transfers.

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Squad:

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The squad looks to be a lot better/ more balanced after Rafaelle's first full pre-season in charge, which will allow him to focus more specifically on problem areas in future windows and signing younger players to gradually bring into the squad rather than automatic first teamers, as the club obviously can't afford to have transfer windows like this every year.

Fixtures:

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The start of the season has been very disappointing for Rafaelle, especially considering the finish they made to last season. The club were missing some players due to the Olympics for the first two games and hopefully the poor start is more indicative of players needing to gel rather than poor signings! The club is predicted to finish 8th but Rafaelle is hoping to break into the top 4 given the money spent in the summer.

Europa League Group:

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This is probably one of the best groups Sunderland could have hoped for considering they were 4th seeds. What's even better for Rafaelle though, is that he gets the chance to get one over on ex club Aris' main rivals who beat him to the Greek Superleague title in the 2019/2020 season! These games are likely to be given high priority whereas the other 4 are likely to feature heavily rotated sides...

Next update will be a September and October review...

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What a season! Imagine getting Champions League football after being rock bottom for however long it was, hopefully top 4 this season though. Top job mate.
 
Just got back up to date with this mate, been away on holiday and the wi fi was down!!! Fantastic first season at Sunderland, now the challenge will be to break the top 4, with those signings and a pre season under your belt, I reckon it could be on the cards. Good luck mate. :D
 

Sunderland AFC
September + October - 2024

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Fixtures:

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After a slightly shaky start to the season, Rafaelle's team picked up their form over the past couple of months. In the Premier League it was 4 wins and 2 draws from the 6 league games played, in the Europa League it was 2 wins and 1 loss and in the Capital One Cup the club progressed past West Ham and Derby to secure a quarter final tie away to Championship side Blackburn. The defeat away in Brugge was disappointing but Rafaelle did put out a backup side, whilst the 3-2 win away at a struggling Chelsea side was probably the highlight from a supporters point of view. However, Rafaelle's highlight was getting one over on his old club Aris' rivals PAOK, such is his soft spot for his time spent in Greece.

League Table/Europa League Group:

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Things are looking pretty tight at the top of the Europa League Group, but Rafaelle is still very confident his side will get into the knockout rounds. In the league, SAFC sit 4th on 17 points from 9 games so they are currently in line with their ambition of achieving a top 4 finish. Hopefully, competing in the other competitions won't negatively affect the club's league form too much.

Player Stats:

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Star signing Valerio Petrella has proved to be a good acquisition for Rafaelle so far, scoring the goals up front that Craig Healy wasn't managing to do last season. Brazilian defensive midfielder Gomes has had a fantastic start of the season with an average rating of 7.30, which is great for an anchor man. One player who has struggled so far though is new signing Andre, but he will hopefully flourish as he continues to settle into his new surroundings.

Other News:

1) As Rafaelle continues to put his own stamp onto the club, he terminated the contract of Director of Football Lee Congerton and hired the Corinthians DOF Severino Carvalho Mota and gave him the reigns to be in charge of scouting at the club.

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Next update will be a November and December review, can Rafaelle continue to push Sunderland towards the Champions League or will the fact they are competing on numerous front negatively affect their form?​
 
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