Sporting Club : Trying to buy a World Cup!
- Thread starter Cahoon
- Start date
- Replies 121
- Views 29K
ANNUAL PORTUGUESE AWARDS SHOW & DINNER 2015
It was Jackson Martinez's year at the awards, the forward was All-World in Portugal and, in my opinion, needs to be moving on to a bigger league so I an stop worrying about him.
Personality of the Year: Eduardo (Sporting)
Runners up: Jackson Martinez (Porto), Luisao (Benfica)
View attachment 398595
Domestic Based Portuguese Player of the Year: Adrien (Sporting)
Runners up: Andre Martins (Sporting), Pizzi (Benfica)
View attachment 398596
Foreign Based Portuguese Player of the Year: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
Runners up: Joao Moutinho (Monaco), Tiago Gomes (APOEL)
Liga ZON SAGRES Player of the Year: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Runners up: Juan Fernando Quintero (Porto), Adrien (Sporting)
Liga ZON SAGRES Most Assists: Filip Djuricic (Benfica)
Runners up: Adrien (Sporting), Juan Fernando Quintero (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Most Goals: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Runners up: Fidelis (Maritimo), Oscar Cardoso (Benfica)
Liga ZON SAGRES Most Man of the Match: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Runners up: Adrien (Sporting), Oscar Cardoso (Benfica)
Liga ZON SAGRES Top Striker: Fidelis (Maritimo)
Runners up: Jackson Martinez (Porto), Oscar Cardoso (Benfica)
(Anyone else sick of this League of Angels popup? I can't get through a sentence without it popping up twice)
Liga ZON SAGRES Young Player of the Year: Layvin Kurzawa (Benfica)
Liga ZON SAGRES Keeper of the Year: Eduardo (Sporting)
Runners up: Artur (Benfica), Helton (Porto)
View attachment 398598
Liga ZON SAGRES Forward of the Year: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Runners up: Oscar Cardoso (Benfica), Fidelis (Maritimo)
Liga ZON SAGRES Team of the Year:
View attachment 398604
Sporting's Adrien and Eduardo were both named to the Team of the Year. (Adrien's selection cost Sporting almost 40k)
Liga ZON SAGRES Central Defender of the Year: Marcos Rojo (Porto)
Runners up: Luisao (Benfica), Mateo Mussachio (Benfica)
Liga ZON SAGRES Fullback of the Year: Alex Sandro (Porto)
Runners up: Norberto (Pacos), Carlos Zuniga (Porto)
Sporting CP Fans Players of the Year: Adrien
View attachment 398600
End of Season Leaders
View attachment 398603
Other End of Season Notes:
End of Season Confidence Review: STABLE!!!!!
That's right people, my job security has been upgraded to stable! I can start looking for a house in Lisbon instead of living in a hotel!
Portuguese Liga has remained 6th in reputation but have moved up to 5th in coefficient, despite a poor year in Europe. The reason is that an even poorer year has dropped off the 5 year rating, next year will almost certainly see Portugal drop back to 6th.
Sporting have dropped another 5 places to 42nd in European coefficient, so if we do make it through two rounds of playoffs to make the group stage we can look forward to an extremely tough group.
The first of our South American free* signings has arrived. Nicolas Careca, a striker who will train as AMC. Careca was poached from Gremio during the first year of the save.
View attachment 398602
*-Not including compensation
It was Jackson Martinez's year at the awards, the forward was All-World in Portugal and, in my opinion, needs to be moving on to a bigger league so I an stop worrying about him.
Personality of the Year: Eduardo (Sporting)
Runners up: Jackson Martinez (Porto), Luisao (Benfica)
View attachment 398595
Domestic Based Portuguese Player of the Year: Adrien (Sporting)
Runners up: Andre Martins (Sporting), Pizzi (Benfica)
View attachment 398596
Foreign Based Portuguese Player of the Year: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
Runners up: Joao Moutinho (Monaco), Tiago Gomes (APOEL)
Liga ZON SAGRES Player of the Year: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Runners up: Juan Fernando Quintero (Porto), Adrien (Sporting)
Liga ZON SAGRES Most Assists: Filip Djuricic (Benfica)
Runners up: Adrien (Sporting), Juan Fernando Quintero (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Most Goals: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Runners up: Fidelis (Maritimo), Oscar Cardoso (Benfica)
Liga ZON SAGRES Most Man of the Match: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Runners up: Adrien (Sporting), Oscar Cardoso (Benfica)
Liga ZON SAGRES Top Striker: Fidelis (Maritimo)
Runners up: Jackson Martinez (Porto), Oscar Cardoso (Benfica)
(Anyone else sick of this League of Angels popup? I can't get through a sentence without it popping up twice)
Liga ZON SAGRES Young Player of the Year: Layvin Kurzawa (Benfica)
Liga ZON SAGRES Keeper of the Year: Eduardo (Sporting)
Runners up: Artur (Benfica), Helton (Porto)
View attachment 398598
Liga ZON SAGRES Forward of the Year: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Runners up: Oscar Cardoso (Benfica), Fidelis (Maritimo)
Liga ZON SAGRES Team of the Year:
View attachment 398604
Sporting's Adrien and Eduardo were both named to the Team of the Year. (Adrien's selection cost Sporting almost 40k)
Liga ZON SAGRES Central Defender of the Year: Marcos Rojo (Porto)
Runners up: Luisao (Benfica), Mateo Mussachio (Benfica)
Liga ZON SAGRES Fullback of the Year: Alex Sandro (Porto)
Runners up: Norberto (Pacos), Carlos Zuniga (Porto)
Sporting CP Fans Players of the Year: Adrien
View attachment 398600
End of Season Leaders
View attachment 398603
Other End of Season Notes:
End of Season Confidence Review: STABLE!!!!!
That's right people, my job security has been upgraded to stable! I can start looking for a house in Lisbon instead of living in a hotel!
Portuguese Liga has remained 6th in reputation but have moved up to 5th in coefficient, despite a poor year in Europe. The reason is that an even poorer year has dropped off the 5 year rating, next year will almost certainly see Portugal drop back to 6th.
Sporting have dropped another 5 places to 42nd in European coefficient, so if we do make it through two rounds of playoffs to make the group stage we can look forward to an extremely tough group.
The first of our South American free* signings has arrived. Nicolas Careca, a striker who will train as AMC. Careca was poached from Gremio during the first year of the save.
View attachment 398602
*-Not including compensation
TACA DO PORTUGAL FINAL
View attachment 398589
A capacity crowd of over 37,000 packed the National Stadium to watch the last match of the Portuguese Calendar, the grand daddy of Portuguese Cup, the Taca do Portugal.
Braga's Yazalde scored in minute 40 to give Braga the lead but 18 year old Pedro Empis, the wingback who was promoted to the first team after the Cortez scandal scored his first professional goal on 68 to tie it up. He looked visibly shaken as the Sporting fans chanted his name. The youngster looks to have a promising future at Sporting and has no obstacles between him and the starting left wingback position for 2015/16
The scores stayed level through extra time and we went to penalties.
Braga missed their 2nd penalty and that looked to be it, then Sporting missed their 3rd shot. Braga then missed their 3rd shot to put the ball back into Sporting's corner, but Sporting missed their 4th shot! Each team traded goals until Braga's Mario Samprisi missed his shot, Alemao buried his to give Sporting the victory and the trophy in a 7-6 penalty shootout!
View attachment 398585View attachment 398586View attachment 398584
View attachment 398589
A capacity crowd of over 37,000 packed the National Stadium to watch the last match of the Portuguese Calendar, the grand daddy of Portuguese Cup, the Taca do Portugal.
Braga's Yazalde scored in minute 40 to give Braga the lead but 18 year old Pedro Empis, the wingback who was promoted to the first team after the Cortez scandal scored his first professional goal on 68 to tie it up. He looked visibly shaken as the Sporting fans chanted his name. The youngster looks to have a promising future at Sporting and has no obstacles between him and the starting left wingback position for 2015/16
The scores stayed level through extra time and we went to penalties.
Braga missed their 2nd penalty and that looked to be it, then Sporting missed their 3rd shot. Braga then missed their 3rd shot to put the ball back into Sporting's corner, but Sporting missed their 4th shot! Each team traded goals until Braga's Mario Samprisi missed his shot, Alemao buried his to give Sporting the victory and the trophy in a 7-6 penalty shootout!
View attachment 398585View attachment 398586View attachment 398584
OFFSEASON HAPPENINGS
Marco Benassi, on loan from Inter, had an impressive season with Sporting and had expressed his desire to stay on permanently. Sporting manager Boss Tweed had also expressed a desire to keep him on. Inter, however, expressed their desire to receive over 20million for Benassi and then Boss Tweed expressed a desire to tell Inter where to go.
The end result: Marco Benassi is leaving on a jet plane, don't know when he'll be back again.
View attachment 398583View attachment 398582
Sporting have given Tweed a 7million transfer budget, the biggest he's seen in his now 3 seasons at Sporting. It will surely all be spent in South America.
Rumour has it that Andre Martins has requested a move to a bigger club. Tweed apparently tried to dissuade him from wanting to leave but Martins had his mind made up. He has been placed on the transfer list.
Liga ZON SAGRES Title odds 2015/16
Porto 1-2 (?? gimme a break, so what if they won 5 of 6 competitions in the two years lol)
Benfica 4-6 (I'm not sure that's mathematically possible to have these odds as well as 1-2 for Porto)
Evens Sporting (I'm okay with that)
7-4 Braga (With these odds I can't see anyone betting on any of these teams, all too low!)
33-1 Nacional and Maritimo
19 year old striker Cryson has been signed, he'll train as AMC and be sent to the Sporting B
View attachment 398571
Andre Martins, sadly, has been sold to Werder Bremen, for 11million. Seems like a low total, Sporting could have really got more, but they didn't want to prolong the process out of respect to Martins who has been a fantastic servant to the club.
View attachment 398569View attachment 398582
Marco Demasceno is in the last year of his contract but has refused to sign an extension, he has also declined to leave Sporting on a transfer. Is he trying to screw the club? He arrived a few years ago for 750k and Sporting has received two offers of over 1million for him but he declined to sign with either team. "I think it's time to show him how bad life can be at Sporting" said Tweed. Demasceno was sent to the B squad but I wouldn't expect to see him in any competetive games anytime soon.
Zakaria Labyad was let go for free to AZ. He's a promising player but already capped and making 50k/week for the past two seasons, it's a big boost for the accounting department! We dissed each other on his way out of the club, good riddance to bad rubbish as far as I'm concerned.
View attachment 398486View attachment 398485
Sporting have a date with Porto in the SuperTaca on August 8th. Another chance to win some silverware.
The Champions League Best Place 3rd Qualifying Round Draw
Seeded Teams
Metalist (Ukraine)
CSKA Moscow (Russia)
Lazio (Italy)
Valencia (Spain)
Sporting (Portugal)
Unseeded Teams
Viktoria Plzen (Czech)
Besiktas (Turkey)
Feyenoord (Holland)
Gladbach (Germany) *Please avoid*
Stade Rennais (France)
The Draw
CSKA Moscow
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
vs
.
.
.
.
.
..
Besiktas
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
CSKA Moscow v. Besiktas
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Lazio
..
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
vs.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Stade Rennais
Lazio v. Stade Rennais
...
...
...
..
.
Viktoria Plzen
.
.
.
.
.
.
Valencia
.
Viktoria Plzen v. Valencia
.
.
.
.
.
.
Gladbach
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Metalist!
.
Gladbach v. Metalist
.
.
.
.
Last matchup is, of course,
Feyenoord v. Sporting
Marco Benassi, on loan from Inter, had an impressive season with Sporting and had expressed his desire to stay on permanently. Sporting manager Boss Tweed had also expressed a desire to keep him on. Inter, however, expressed their desire to receive over 20million for Benassi and then Boss Tweed expressed a desire to tell Inter where to go.
The end result: Marco Benassi is leaving on a jet plane, don't know when he'll be back again.
View attachment 398583View attachment 398582
Sporting have given Tweed a 7million transfer budget, the biggest he's seen in his now 3 seasons at Sporting. It will surely all be spent in South America.
Rumour has it that Andre Martins has requested a move to a bigger club. Tweed apparently tried to dissuade him from wanting to leave but Martins had his mind made up. He has been placed on the transfer list.
Liga ZON SAGRES Title odds 2015/16
Porto 1-2 (?? gimme a break, so what if they won 5 of 6 competitions in the two years lol)
Benfica 4-6 (I'm not sure that's mathematically possible to have these odds as well as 1-2 for Porto)
Evens Sporting (I'm okay with that)
7-4 Braga (With these odds I can't see anyone betting on any of these teams, all too low!)
33-1 Nacional and Maritimo
19 year old striker Cryson has been signed, he'll train as AMC and be sent to the Sporting B
View attachment 398571
Andre Martins, sadly, has been sold to Werder Bremen, for 11million. Seems like a low total, Sporting could have really got more, but they didn't want to prolong the process out of respect to Martins who has been a fantastic servant to the club.
View attachment 398569View attachment 398582
Marco Demasceno is in the last year of his contract but has refused to sign an extension, he has also declined to leave Sporting on a transfer. Is he trying to screw the club? He arrived a few years ago for 750k and Sporting has received two offers of over 1million for him but he declined to sign with either team. "I think it's time to show him how bad life can be at Sporting" said Tweed. Demasceno was sent to the B squad but I wouldn't expect to see him in any competetive games anytime soon.
Zakaria Labyad was let go for free to AZ. He's a promising player but already capped and making 50k/week for the past two seasons, it's a big boost for the accounting department! We dissed each other on his way out of the club, good riddance to bad rubbish as far as I'm concerned.
View attachment 398486View attachment 398485
Sporting have a date with Porto in the SuperTaca on August 8th. Another chance to win some silverware.
The Champions League Best Place 3rd Qualifying Round Draw
Seeded Teams
Metalist (Ukraine)
CSKA Moscow (Russia)
Lazio (Italy)
Valencia (Spain)
Sporting (Portugal)
Unseeded Teams
Viktoria Plzen (Czech)
Besiktas (Turkey)
Feyenoord (Holland)
Gladbach (Germany) *Please avoid*
Stade Rennais (France)
The Draw
CSKA Moscow
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
vs
.
.
.
.
.
..
Besiktas
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
CSKA Moscow v. Besiktas
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Lazio
..
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
vs.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Stade Rennais
Lazio v. Stade Rennais
...
...
...
..
.
Viktoria Plzen
.
.
.
.
.
.
Valencia
.
Viktoria Plzen v. Valencia
.
.
.
.
.
.
Gladbach
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Metalist!
.
Gladbach v. Metalist
.
.
.
.
Last matchup is, of course,
Feyenoord v. Sporting
Last edited:
AUGUST 2015
Well, first off, as usual Sporting had a terrible pre-season. This year, we failed to win a single friendly. The squad had been pretty thin, with some key departures. The signings that I've made have mostly been young teenagers who won't even arrive at the club until 2017 and even then, they'll be 18 year olds. So, with Champions League football adding to the fixture list I may have to sign some players who can contribute right away.
One bright note from pre-season, Sporting managed our first victory over Porto in many years, winning the Supertaca with an 87th minute goal from Joao Mario!
View attachment 398498
Pre=season
View attachment 398499
1st choice 'keeper Eduardo was felled with an injury early in August and I mistakenly forgot to promote Charlie Albinson from the B team. The other keeper Jamal Blackburn was unsigned so I was forced to start Paulo Henriques, who was also slightly injured and at 68% for the opening league match as well as the first leg against Feyenoord. Because of this I was forced to play extra defensive.
Transfers In
After getting rid of the last of the expensive but useless players on the roster, as well as selling some key players and adjusting the budget, I got the transfer budget just above 23million. I used it to sign three players to fill in holes left by the departures of Benassi and Andre Martins.
View attachment 398491View attachment 398490View attachment 398489
Adryan was purchased surprisingly cheaply, he's a player that I have used in the past 2 or 3 versions of the game. Elton is solid but with no real upside. The big signing for me is Otavio. At 20 his value is already 14million, I signed him for 10million. He's a huge risk as far as being capped by Brazil (he has 14 U20 caps already) bur even so, I can't see losing money on him.
Liga ZON SAGRES
Aug 16 Belenenses 0 Sporting 1
Goals: Joao Pedro
Aug 22 Sporting 0 Benfica 0
Aug 30 Nacional 1 Sporting 2
Goals: Adryan, Pedro Empis
Low scoring games in August due to the defensive strategy I employed, trying to protect my young keepers.
I re-signed Jamal Blackburn after he failed to find a new club.
It's the usual suspects at the top of the table early on.
Bad news, still no one has come in for Jackson Martinez. It looks like another year of punishment!
Porto did sell Marcos Rojo to Atleico for only 2.5million, so the 5.75million we got for him doesn't look so bad anymore. I have to say 2.5million seems low for Rojo, he won Central Defender of the year for the past two seasons at Porto.
View attachment 398488
Champions League Best Place 3rd Round Tie
Aug 19 Sporting 0 Feyenoord 0
With starting keeper Paulo Henriques at only 68% I did my best to keep the game slow and boring. The end result was a bore draw. I took it as a positive result, keeping Feyenoord from getting an away goal.
View attachment 398487
Aug 25 Feyenoord 1 Sporting 0
A 62nd minute goal from a mad scramble in front was all Feyenoord needed as they advance to the Best Placed Playoff while Sporting will go to the Europa League group stage. I wasn't too disappointed with this as it came before my signings and I did have such a thin squad that we really had no business winning the tie. I don't feel that this team will be ready to compete in the Champions League until 2019 at the earliest. Even with the 3 signings, most of the squad is really young at this point.
Europa League
Couldn't have asked for an easier group. That doesn't necessarily guarantee results but it helps!
Group A
FK Austria Wien (Austria)
Sporting (Portugal)
Metalist (Ukraine)
Videoton (Hungary)
Well, first off, as usual Sporting had a terrible pre-season. This year, we failed to win a single friendly. The squad had been pretty thin, with some key departures. The signings that I've made have mostly been young teenagers who won't even arrive at the club until 2017 and even then, they'll be 18 year olds. So, with Champions League football adding to the fixture list I may have to sign some players who can contribute right away.
One bright note from pre-season, Sporting managed our first victory over Porto in many years, winning the Supertaca with an 87th minute goal from Joao Mario!
View attachment 398498
Pre=season
View attachment 398499
1st choice 'keeper Eduardo was felled with an injury early in August and I mistakenly forgot to promote Charlie Albinson from the B team. The other keeper Jamal Blackburn was unsigned so I was forced to start Paulo Henriques, who was also slightly injured and at 68% for the opening league match as well as the first leg against Feyenoord. Because of this I was forced to play extra defensive.
Transfers In
After getting rid of the last of the expensive but useless players on the roster, as well as selling some key players and adjusting the budget, I got the transfer budget just above 23million. I used it to sign three players to fill in holes left by the departures of Benassi and Andre Martins.
View attachment 398491View attachment 398490View attachment 398489
Adryan was purchased surprisingly cheaply, he's a player that I have used in the past 2 or 3 versions of the game. Elton is solid but with no real upside. The big signing for me is Otavio. At 20 his value is already 14million, I signed him for 10million. He's a huge risk as far as being capped by Brazil (he has 14 U20 caps already) bur even so, I can't see losing money on him.
Liga ZON SAGRES
Aug 16 Belenenses 0 Sporting 1
Goals: Joao Pedro
Aug 22 Sporting 0 Benfica 0
Aug 30 Nacional 1 Sporting 2
Goals: Adryan, Pedro Empis
Low scoring games in August due to the defensive strategy I employed, trying to protect my young keepers.
I re-signed Jamal Blackburn after he failed to find a new club.
It's the usual suspects at the top of the table early on.
Bad news, still no one has come in for Jackson Martinez. It looks like another year of punishment!
Porto did sell Marcos Rojo to Atleico for only 2.5million, so the 5.75million we got for him doesn't look so bad anymore. I have to say 2.5million seems low for Rojo, he won Central Defender of the year for the past two seasons at Porto.
View attachment 398488
Champions League Best Place 3rd Round Tie
Aug 19 Sporting 0 Feyenoord 0
With starting keeper Paulo Henriques at only 68% I did my best to keep the game slow and boring. The end result was a bore draw. I took it as a positive result, keeping Feyenoord from getting an away goal.
View attachment 398487
Aug 25 Feyenoord 1 Sporting 0
A 62nd minute goal from a mad scramble in front was all Feyenoord needed as they advance to the Best Placed Playoff while Sporting will go to the Europa League group stage. I wasn't too disappointed with this as it came before my signings and I did have such a thin squad that we really had no business winning the tie. I don't feel that this team will be ready to compete in the Champions League until 2019 at the earliest. Even with the 3 signings, most of the squad is really young at this point.
Europa League
Couldn't have asked for an easier group. That doesn't necessarily guarantee results but it helps!
Group A
FK Austria Wien (Austria)
Sporting (Portugal)
Metalist (Ukraine)
Videoton (Hungary)
Late 2015
So, I had a lot of free time yesterday and I advanced all the way through November. The results in the league were....well, pretty awful, to be honest. I had my hero, Liedson, talking about me in the press, saying I might be in over my head, it was pretty harsh. I got called onto the carpet again by the board and it was pretty hard to defend myself because there's no option to answer, "Yeah, we sold all our good foreign talent and it's gonna take a few years for our amazing youth players to mature and, under the circumstances, we're doing pretty well."
It hasn't helped that between the two of them, Maritimo and Braga have one loss in 22 games. Add that to the usual suspects Benfica and Porto doing what they do and that leaves Sporting down in 7th. Not good.
The results in the Europa League have been slightly better, with 3 wins and a draw from 5 games we sit top of the group and, with a goal difference of +9 we're all but guaranteed to qualify for the knockout stages.
We won't be defending our Taca crown and we were knocked out in the 3rd round by Aves. I honestly thought that was going to be curtains for me but I managed to survive and keep my job.
Time for a Cry Baby Rant
To be honest, I find that the Sporting board have never given me a fair shake from the beginning, I mean my results, up until this year, have been pretty good. Sure, we finished 4th in year 1 but we went to the final day with a shot at the title! The second season we qualified for the Champions League, but the whole time I had to defend my job? Not to mention the fact that I've not received a single request from the board in three years, not extra coaches, no facilities, forget about extra cash. I mean, earlier this season I was approached by Sao Paolo to become their manager, so I must be doing something right? (Or maybe it's because I signed over 20 Brazilians in the past calendar year?).
That brings me to the one bright spot, I managed to sign so many young Brazilians in September that I haven't even counted them all, there are some diamonds in there. Unfortunately, I may not even be around by the time they arrive.
As for my goal of fielding an entire National Team with Sporting players and nationalized Brazilians, I GOT ONE!
View attachment 398146View attachment 398145
Youngster Douglas is now a Portuguese Citizen. He actually arrived from Guimaraes but he is uncapped and he has a bright future, he could very well be my starting DM on my National Squad...if I make it that far.
Here is the fixture list from September, October and November
View attachment 398153
The Table
View attachment 398152
I'm really 4 points off 3rd, which is my goal for the season, so it looks a lot worse than it is.
Europa League
View attachment 398147
We'd have to lose big in the final match in order to not qualify.
I head into December now with the hope of keeping my job, once again.
View attachment 398135
The first game against Beira-Mar is an absolute must win game. If I lose that, the next game is against Porto and two straight losses at this point would mean the axe!
So, I had a lot of free time yesterday and I advanced all the way through November. The results in the league were....well, pretty awful, to be honest. I had my hero, Liedson, talking about me in the press, saying I might be in over my head, it was pretty harsh. I got called onto the carpet again by the board and it was pretty hard to defend myself because there's no option to answer, "Yeah, we sold all our good foreign talent and it's gonna take a few years for our amazing youth players to mature and, under the circumstances, we're doing pretty well."
It hasn't helped that between the two of them, Maritimo and Braga have one loss in 22 games. Add that to the usual suspects Benfica and Porto doing what they do and that leaves Sporting down in 7th. Not good.
The results in the Europa League have been slightly better, with 3 wins and a draw from 5 games we sit top of the group and, with a goal difference of +9 we're all but guaranteed to qualify for the knockout stages.
We won't be defending our Taca crown and we were knocked out in the 3rd round by Aves. I honestly thought that was going to be curtains for me but I managed to survive and keep my job.
Time for a Cry Baby Rant
To be honest, I find that the Sporting board have never given me a fair shake from the beginning, I mean my results, up until this year, have been pretty good. Sure, we finished 4th in year 1 but we went to the final day with a shot at the title! The second season we qualified for the Champions League, but the whole time I had to defend my job? Not to mention the fact that I've not received a single request from the board in three years, not extra coaches, no facilities, forget about extra cash. I mean, earlier this season I was approached by Sao Paolo to become their manager, so I must be doing something right? (Or maybe it's because I signed over 20 Brazilians in the past calendar year?).
That brings me to the one bright spot, I managed to sign so many young Brazilians in September that I haven't even counted them all, there are some diamonds in there. Unfortunately, I may not even be around by the time they arrive.
As for my goal of fielding an entire National Team with Sporting players and nationalized Brazilians, I GOT ONE!
View attachment 398146View attachment 398145
Youngster Douglas is now a Portuguese Citizen. He actually arrived from Guimaraes but he is uncapped and he has a bright future, he could very well be my starting DM on my National Squad...if I make it that far.
Here is the fixture list from September, October and November
View attachment 398153
The Table
View attachment 398152
I'm really 4 points off 3rd, which is my goal for the season, so it looks a lot worse than it is.
Europa League
View attachment 398147
We'd have to lose big in the final match in order to not qualify.
I head into December now with the hope of keeping my job, once again.
View attachment 398135
The first game against Beira-Mar is an absolute must win game. If I lose that, the next game is against Porto and two straight losses at this point would mean the axe!
December 2015
Perhaps my job isn't as precarious as I thought, I got my board review December 1 and my job status is listed as stable!
The final list for the Ballon d'Or was released and, once again, it contained only players from the top 5 leagues Spain, Germany, England, France and Italy. All three seasons this has been the case, I'm adding this to my list of goals, I'd like to get a player not only on this list, but the shortlist as well and perhaps even winning.
Liga ZON SAGRES
Dec 2 Beira-Mar 1 Sporting 2
Goals: Otavio, William Carvalho
Sporting led 1-0 the whole way until Beira-Mar scored in the 82nd minute. I was thinking abpout the consequences of a draw combined with a loss to Porto and was hopeful. But William Carvalho inexplicably was sent in all alone (from his center half position) and placed a shot just inside the upright from an almost impossible angle to give Sporting all 3 points!
Dec 6 Porto 0 Sporting 1
Goals: Adryan
View attachment 398105
Not only an unexpected win, but a dominant performance to go with it. Jackson Martinez was invisible, Porto hardly mustered any chances and the score really could have been 3-0 or 4-0. This win could be a watershed moment for the club. I've started to play more of the youth and they don't look out of place. This team will only get better from here on so hopefully there are blue skies ahead! Porto's Josue was injured in the 3rd minute and will be out for 3 months.
EUROPA LEAGUE
Dec 10 Sporting 4 Metalist 2
Goals: Alemao, Adryan, Rithely, Joao Mario
Pedro Henriques, a regen keeper from season 1, made his debut in the game. He's not ready for primetime but I want to throw him out in meaningless games just to get him 1st team football. He's still a couple years away but he's already playing U21 for Portugal so he's gonna be a good one. Sporting qualifies for the knockout stages.
Liga ZON SAGRES
Dec 13 Sporting 1 Setubal 0
Goal: Own Goal
Sloppy game, we were saved by an own goal from a corner.
EUROPA LEAGUE KNOCKOUT DRAW
Round of 32
Sporting v. Dinamo Moscow
the winner plays either Fenerbahce or Standard Liege in the round of 16
Liga ZON SAGRES
Dec 19 Sporting 0 Maritimo 1
The loss puts us 10 back of Maritimo who are on a 15 match unbeaten run in the league. The goal was scored by Fidelis, who has been another killer against us. Fidelis has 61 goals in 83 matched during this save. Left wingback Pedro Empis let his frustration get the better of him right at the final whistle as he kicked a Maritimo player from behind and got himself sent off.
Taca da Liga Draw
Sporting got an easy group with Belenenses, Pacos and Penafiel
Dec 27 Penafial Sporting 1
Goals: Pedro Empis
An unbelievable strike from Empis, could be the goal of the tournament. Overall a poor game against the Liga 2 side.
Table:
View attachment 398054
Results/Fixtures:
View attachment 398053
Perhaps my job isn't as precarious as I thought, I got my board review December 1 and my job status is listed as stable!
The final list for the Ballon d'Or was released and, once again, it contained only players from the top 5 leagues Spain, Germany, England, France and Italy. All three seasons this has been the case, I'm adding this to my list of goals, I'd like to get a player not only on this list, but the shortlist as well and perhaps even winning.
Liga ZON SAGRES
Dec 2 Beira-Mar 1 Sporting 2
Goals: Otavio, William Carvalho
Sporting led 1-0 the whole way until Beira-Mar scored in the 82nd minute. I was thinking abpout the consequences of a draw combined with a loss to Porto and was hopeful. But William Carvalho inexplicably was sent in all alone (from his center half position) and placed a shot just inside the upright from an almost impossible angle to give Sporting all 3 points!
Dec 6 Porto 0 Sporting 1
Goals: Adryan
View attachment 398105
Not only an unexpected win, but a dominant performance to go with it. Jackson Martinez was invisible, Porto hardly mustered any chances and the score really could have been 3-0 or 4-0. This win could be a watershed moment for the club. I've started to play more of the youth and they don't look out of place. This team will only get better from here on so hopefully there are blue skies ahead! Porto's Josue was injured in the 3rd minute and will be out for 3 months.
EUROPA LEAGUE
Dec 10 Sporting 4 Metalist 2
Goals: Alemao, Adryan, Rithely, Joao Mario
Pedro Henriques, a regen keeper from season 1, made his debut in the game. He's not ready for primetime but I want to throw him out in meaningless games just to get him 1st team football. He's still a couple years away but he's already playing U21 for Portugal so he's gonna be a good one. Sporting qualifies for the knockout stages.
Liga ZON SAGRES
Dec 13 Sporting 1 Setubal 0
Goal: Own Goal
Sloppy game, we were saved by an own goal from a corner.
EUROPA LEAGUE KNOCKOUT DRAW
Round of 32
Sporting v. Dinamo Moscow
the winner plays either Fenerbahce or Standard Liege in the round of 16
Liga ZON SAGRES
Dec 19 Sporting 0 Maritimo 1
The loss puts us 10 back of Maritimo who are on a 15 match unbeaten run in the league. The goal was scored by Fidelis, who has been another killer against us. Fidelis has 61 goals in 83 matched during this save. Left wingback Pedro Empis let his frustration get the better of him right at the final whistle as he kicked a Maritimo player from behind and got himself sent off.
Taca da Liga Draw
Sporting got an easy group with Belenenses, Pacos and Penafiel
Dec 27 Penafial Sporting 1
Goals: Pedro Empis
An unbelievable strike from Empis, could be the goal of the tournament. Overall a poor game against the Liga 2 side.
Table:
View attachment 398054
Results/Fixtures:
View attachment 398053
JANUARY 2016
The young Brazilians start showing up in one year. There are over 30 of them at this point and I'm signing more and more of them as the reports come in. Most will crash and burn, but if I can get a starting 11 I'll be delighted!
DM Rithely was the latest player to come to my office demanding, not asking, to move to a bigger club. He went to Frankfurt for 4.1million. Hoffenheim came in for Elivelton after watching him for the first half of the season. He's my best DC but I don't see him improving to the point where he would play for Portugal, so I accept the offer. I use the money to bring in Lucas Evangelista, one of the stars from my Wolfsburg save. He will most likely be capped by Brazil at this point but it's worth the risk, I need help now!
Big clubs are starting to come in for 17 year old DC Daniel Ramos but I'm not selling.
Liga ZON SAGRES
Jan 10 Sporting 2 Belenenses 0
Goals: Alemao, Adryan
Alemao and Adryan scored almost identical goals, shooting across goal into the bottom corner. Sporting's good play continues.
Taca da Liga
Jan 13 Sporting 3 Belenenses 1
Goals: Joao Mario, Joao Mario, Lucas Evangelista
Evangelista will start at WBL for now, taking Pedro Empis' place. At Wolfsburg in a previous ave, I played him at AMC and he went on to be worth almost 25million, but for now he will fill a need at WBL. My wingbacks are more like wingers than defenders. I use three centre halfs and 2 DM's who act as part of the back 5. The wingbacks attack, and Evangelista should be a big boost at that spot, scoring in his first game is a good sign.
Jan 16 Sporting 2 Nacional 2
Goals: Adyran, Alemao
Adryan and Alemao once again combine in a liga game. A late Nacional goal stole two points from Sporting.
My scouts are bringing me players that are interested in signing on a free but I'm too short of money. With dozens of young Brazilians already set to join the club over the next few seasons I've decided to only go after blue chip prospects in positions that I need for my tactic. No more retraining players and no more borderline players. I can't afford to keep selling players in order to finance my project, the results almost got me fired. I think I have enough players on the way in to field a decent squad and I can continue to supplement that with top prospects.
Taca da Liga
Jan 23 Sporting 2 Pacos 0
Goals: Alan Santos, Alan Santos
Despite winning both earlier group games, if Sporting had lost this game Penafiel would have topped the group and qualified for the semi final. As it is, Sporting will go through along with Benfica, Porto and Maritimo.
Sporting drew Porto while Benfica will play Maritimo
Liga ZON SAGRES
Jan 29 Benfica 3 Sporting 2
Goals: Adryan, own goal.
I haven't paid a whole lot of attention to roster moves made by my rivals, so I was a little surprised to see a familiar face in Benfica's lineup for the game. It seems Marco Benassi signed with Benfica on loan. As it turns out, he didn't leave on a jet plane, he left in a cab!
View attachment 397888View attachment 397890
That's it for January. Adrien is coming back into form, he finished second to Rio Aves Esmael Goncalves as the Liga ZON SAGRES player of the month. Also, Sporting B Manager Abel won his first Manager of the month award.
View attachment 397863
Liga ZON SAGRES table
View attachment 397866
Liga 2 Table
View attachment 397865
The young Brazilians start showing up in one year. There are over 30 of them at this point and I'm signing more and more of them as the reports come in. Most will crash and burn, but if I can get a starting 11 I'll be delighted!
DM Rithely was the latest player to come to my office demanding, not asking, to move to a bigger club. He went to Frankfurt for 4.1million. Hoffenheim came in for Elivelton after watching him for the first half of the season. He's my best DC but I don't see him improving to the point where he would play for Portugal, so I accept the offer. I use the money to bring in Lucas Evangelista, one of the stars from my Wolfsburg save. He will most likely be capped by Brazil at this point but it's worth the risk, I need help now!
Big clubs are starting to come in for 17 year old DC Daniel Ramos but I'm not selling.
Liga ZON SAGRES
Jan 10 Sporting 2 Belenenses 0
Goals: Alemao, Adryan
Alemao and Adryan scored almost identical goals, shooting across goal into the bottom corner. Sporting's good play continues.
Taca da Liga
Jan 13 Sporting 3 Belenenses 1
Goals: Joao Mario, Joao Mario, Lucas Evangelista
Evangelista will start at WBL for now, taking Pedro Empis' place. At Wolfsburg in a previous ave, I played him at AMC and he went on to be worth almost 25million, but for now he will fill a need at WBL. My wingbacks are more like wingers than defenders. I use three centre halfs and 2 DM's who act as part of the back 5. The wingbacks attack, and Evangelista should be a big boost at that spot, scoring in his first game is a good sign.
Jan 16 Sporting 2 Nacional 2
Goals: Adyran, Alemao
Adryan and Alemao once again combine in a liga game. A late Nacional goal stole two points from Sporting.
My scouts are bringing me players that are interested in signing on a free but I'm too short of money. With dozens of young Brazilians already set to join the club over the next few seasons I've decided to only go after blue chip prospects in positions that I need for my tactic. No more retraining players and no more borderline players. I can't afford to keep selling players in order to finance my project, the results almost got me fired. I think I have enough players on the way in to field a decent squad and I can continue to supplement that with top prospects.
Taca da Liga
Jan 23 Sporting 2 Pacos 0
Goals: Alan Santos, Alan Santos
Despite winning both earlier group games, if Sporting had lost this game Penafiel would have topped the group and qualified for the semi final. As it is, Sporting will go through along with Benfica, Porto and Maritimo.
Sporting drew Porto while Benfica will play Maritimo
Liga ZON SAGRES
Jan 29 Benfica 3 Sporting 2
Goals: Adryan, own goal.
I haven't paid a whole lot of attention to roster moves made by my rivals, so I was a little surprised to see a familiar face in Benfica's lineup for the game. It seems Marco Benassi signed with Benfica on loan. As it turns out, he didn't leave on a jet plane, he left in a cab!
View attachment 397888View attachment 397890
That's it for January. Adrien is coming back into form, he finished second to Rio Aves Esmael Goncalves as the Liga ZON SAGRES player of the month. Also, Sporting B Manager Abel won his first Manager of the month award.
View attachment 397863
Liga ZON SAGRES table
View attachment 397866
Liga 2 Table
View attachment 397865
FEBRUARY 2016
Liga ZON SAGRES
Feb 6 Guimaraes 1 Sporting 0
Fans were, once again, devestated by the result. You'd think they would get used to the occasional upset loss. They've also started getting on Lucas Evangelista as they feel that he has played poorly since his signing last month. The game would have been different had it not been for William Carvalho, who tipped in a sure goal from Adryan, the problem was that Carvalho was in an offside position and the goal was called off.
View attachment 397823
Carvalho apologizes to Adryan
Taca da Liga
Feb 11 Sporting 0 Porto 0
(Porto advances 5-4 on penalties)
The only miss was from our regular penalty taker, William Carvalho, who will be replaced as penalty taker by Joao Mario who now has a better penalty rating. Porto will go on to meet Benfica, who beat Maritimo on penalties after 2-2 draw.
View attachment 397820
Liga ZON SAGRES
Feb 14 Sporting 3 Aves 0
Goals: Bernardo Carlos, Lucas Evangelista, Ruben Semedo
EUROPA LEAGUE KNOCKOUT ROUND OF 32
Feb 18 Dinamo Moscow 0 Sporting 2
Goals: Adryan, Lucas Evangelista
View attachment 397795
European away games don't get much more away than Lisbon to Moscow, I probably should rotate my squad more than I do but I take all European games seriously. I want that coefficient to improve, both for Sporting and for Portugal in general. The game was played on a white pitch due to snow. The two away goals give us a huge advantage going back to Portugal.
Liga ZON SAGRES
Feb 21 Sporting 2 Chaves 1
Goals: Lucas Evangelista, Joao Mario
Pedro Empis sent off (again)
I decided to fin Pedro Empis a weeks wages after being sent off in a 1-1 game. We were fortunate to win with 10 men, no thanks to Empis. Hopefully, he will learn his lesson. Especially with Lucas Evangelista able to play his position. He wanted to discuss matters but I declined. I saved 1700, next time it will be two weeks wages.
EUROPE LEAGUE KNOCKOUT ROUND OF 32
Feb 25 Sporting 0 Dinamo Moscow 1
(Sporting advance on aggregate 2-1)
Sporting will play Fenerbahce in the round of 16
Liga ZON SAGRES
Feb 28 Pacos 2 Sporting 3
Goals: Alan Santos, Alan Santos, Lucas Evangelista
View attachment 397779
Shakibala returned and scored 45 seconds into the match. He scored again later on but it was not enough. He has turned into a quality player but I never doubted that, he was sold only because he was capped. Alan Santos scored two for the good guys and the game ended well for Sporting. Except for the fact that starting WBR Bernardo Carlos broke his ankle and won't play again this season.
Liga ZON SAGRES
Mar 6 Gil Vicente 0 Sporting 2
Goals: Lucas Evangelista, Elton
Liga ZON SAGRES March 6
View attachment 397778
Sporting will spend the spring chasing Maritimo and Braga for the third spot in the table. With 7 league games remaining and 3 points to make up on each, the task looks doable. Especially given the fact that Sporting will play each team once more.
Liga ZON SAGRES
Feb 6 Guimaraes 1 Sporting 0
Fans were, once again, devestated by the result. You'd think they would get used to the occasional upset loss. They've also started getting on Lucas Evangelista as they feel that he has played poorly since his signing last month. The game would have been different had it not been for William Carvalho, who tipped in a sure goal from Adryan, the problem was that Carvalho was in an offside position and the goal was called off.
View attachment 397823
Carvalho apologizes to Adryan
Taca da Liga
Feb 11 Sporting 0 Porto 0
(Porto advances 5-4 on penalties)
The only miss was from our regular penalty taker, William Carvalho, who will be replaced as penalty taker by Joao Mario who now has a better penalty rating. Porto will go on to meet Benfica, who beat Maritimo on penalties after 2-2 draw.
View attachment 397820
Liga ZON SAGRES
Feb 14 Sporting 3 Aves 0
Goals: Bernardo Carlos, Lucas Evangelista, Ruben Semedo
EUROPA LEAGUE KNOCKOUT ROUND OF 32
Feb 18 Dinamo Moscow 0 Sporting 2
Goals: Adryan, Lucas Evangelista
View attachment 397795
European away games don't get much more away than Lisbon to Moscow, I probably should rotate my squad more than I do but I take all European games seriously. I want that coefficient to improve, both for Sporting and for Portugal in general. The game was played on a white pitch due to snow. The two away goals give us a huge advantage going back to Portugal.
Liga ZON SAGRES
Feb 21 Sporting 2 Chaves 1
Goals: Lucas Evangelista, Joao Mario
Pedro Empis sent off (again)
I decided to fin Pedro Empis a weeks wages after being sent off in a 1-1 game. We were fortunate to win with 10 men, no thanks to Empis. Hopefully, he will learn his lesson. Especially with Lucas Evangelista able to play his position. He wanted to discuss matters but I declined. I saved 1700, next time it will be two weeks wages.
EUROPE LEAGUE KNOCKOUT ROUND OF 32
Feb 25 Sporting 0 Dinamo Moscow 1
(Sporting advance on aggregate 2-1)
Sporting will play Fenerbahce in the round of 16
Liga ZON SAGRES
Feb 28 Pacos 2 Sporting 3
Goals: Alan Santos, Alan Santos, Lucas Evangelista
View attachment 397779
Shakibala returned and scored 45 seconds into the match. He scored again later on but it was not enough. He has turned into a quality player but I never doubted that, he was sold only because he was capped. Alan Santos scored two for the good guys and the game ended well for Sporting. Except for the fact that starting WBR Bernardo Carlos broke his ankle and won't play again this season.
Liga ZON SAGRES
Mar 6 Gil Vicente 0 Sporting 2
Goals: Lucas Evangelista, Elton
Liga ZON SAGRES March 6
View attachment 397778
Sporting will spend the spring chasing Maritimo and Braga for the third spot in the table. With 7 league games remaining and 3 points to make up on each, the task looks doable. Especially given the fact that Sporting will play each team once more.
Last edited:
mkempdillon
Member
- Joined
- Dec 19, 2009
- Messages
- 111
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 0
Love this story mate, cracking updates! Could easily sell the average regens for a mill or two each?
Thanks! Yeah, I'm starting to get offers for the regens from season 1 but I'm really counting on the money from selling some of the Brazilians I have coming over. The really good ones will be capped by Brazil before I get a chance to nationalize them, they should go for big money.
END OF LEAGUE WRAP UP
I finished the season last night, I couldn't stop so I just played it right through and took lots of screenshots to remind me of what happened. The title race came down to Porto vs. Benfica, that much has been clear for a while. The race for the final Champions League spot once again came down to Maritimo, Braga and Sporting.
Table on March 6th
I finished the season last night, I couldn't stop so I just played it right through and took lots of screenshots to remind me of what happened. The title race came down to Porto vs. Benfica, that much has been clear for a while. The race for the final Champions League spot once again came down to Maritimo, Braga and Sporting.
Table on March 6th
Benfica 51
Porto 50
Maritimo 46
--------------
Braga 46
Sporting 43
Porto 50
Maritimo 46
--------------
Braga 46
Sporting 43
Just to make things easier to follow. Porto holds the tiebreaker over Benfica, so if they end up tied, Porto will finish ahead. As of March 6th, Maritimo wins all tiebreakers with Braga and/or Sporting. Braga holds the tiebreaker over Sporting.
Porto > Benfica
Maritimo > Braga > Sporting
Maritimo > Braga
Maritimo > Sporting
Braga > Sporting
Liga ZON SAGRES
Game 24
Porto 0 Pacos 0
Benfica 1 Nacional 1
Maritimo 2 Aves 2
Sporting 1 Braga 0
Goal: Lucas Evangelista
Porto > Benfica
Maritimo > Braga > Sporting
Maritimo > Braga
Maritimo > Sporting
Braga > Sporting
Liga ZON SAGRES
Game 24
Porto 0 Pacos 0
Benfica 1 Nacional 1
Maritimo 2 Aves 2
Sporting 1 Braga 0
Goal: Lucas Evangelista
Table
Benfica 52
Porto 51
Maritimo 47
--------------
Braga 46
Sporting 46
Benfica 52
Porto 51
Maritimo 47
--------------
Braga 46
Sporting 46
Despite the win over Braga, Sporting still lose the tiebreaker to Braga based on an earlier 2-0 to Braga.
Game 25
Chaves 0 Porto 3
Guimaraes 3 Benfica 3
Pacos 0 Maritimo 1
Braga no game
Rio Ave 1 Sporting 1
Goal: Pedro Empis
Game 25
Chaves 0 Porto 3
Guimaraes 3 Benfica 3
Pacos 0 Maritimo 1
Braga no game
Rio Ave 1 Sporting 1
Goal: Pedro Empis
Table
Porto 54
Benfica 53
Maritimo 50
--------------
Sporting 47
Braga 46 (1 extra game to be played)
Porto 54
Benfica 53
Maritimo 50
--------------
Sporting 47
Braga 46 (1 extra game to be played)
Porto leapfrog Benfica into top spot, while Sporting fall 3 points behind Maritimo. The final weekend this season will feature Sporting at Maritimo.
Game 26
Porto 3 Gil Vicente 1
Benfica 3 Aves 0
Maritimo 3 Chaves 0
Setubal 1 Braga 1
Estoril 0 Sporting 2
Goals: Joao Mario, Adryan
Game 26
Porto 3 Gil Vicente 1
Benfica 3 Aves 0
Maritimo 3 Chaves 0
Setubal 1 Braga 1
Estoril 0 Sporting 2
Goals: Joao Mario, Adryan
Table
Porto 57
Benfica 56
Maritimo 53
--------------
Sporting 50
Braga 47 (1 game in hand)
Porto 57
Benfica 56
Maritimo 53
--------------
Sporting 50
Braga 47 (1 game in hand)
Crucial win for Sporting as they need to stay within 3 points of Maritimo. Braga dropped two important points at Setubal.
Game 27
Braga 1 Porto 1
Pacos 0 Benfica 1
Gil Vicente 2 Maritimo 2
Sporting 4 Beira Mar 2
Goals: Lucas Evangelista (x2), Adrien, Ruben Semedo
Game 27
Braga 1 Porto 1
Pacos 0 Benfica 1
Gil Vicente 2 Maritimo 2
Sporting 4 Beira Mar 2
Goals: Lucas Evangelista (x2), Adrien, Ruben Semedo
Table
Benfica 59
Porto 58
Maritimo 54
---------------
Sporting 53
Braga 48 (1 game in hand)
Benfica 59
Porto 58
Maritimo 54
---------------
Sporting 53
Braga 48 (1 game in hand)
Benfica back on top thanks to help from Braga. Maritimo finally dropped points, allowing Sporting back to within a point which is important because of their early season 1-0 loss to Maritimo. Adriens goal was only his 4th league goal all season, but 1 more would net him a 425K bonus. As bad as this sounds, I will try to prevent him from scoring that goal. Even with the impressive draw against Porto, Braga are fading fast.
Game 28
Porto 1 Rio Ave 1
Benfica 2 Chaves 3
Maritimo 2 Braga 1
Setubal 2 Sporting 2
Goals: Eric Dier, Adryan
Game 28
Porto 1 Rio Ave 1
Benfica 2 Chaves 3
Maritimo 2 Braga 1
Setubal 2 Sporting 2
Goals: Eric Dier, Adryan
Table
Porto 59
Benfica 59
Maritimo 57
-------------
Sporting 54
Braga 48 (1 game in hand)
Porto 59
Benfica 59
Maritimo 57
-------------
Sporting 54
Braga 48 (1 game in hand)
Porto back on top this week, Maritimo back to three points up on Sporting. Sporting were down 2-0 with 10 minutes left before Dier scored what I think is his first goal for Sporting (during the save anyway), and then in the 3rd minute of injury time Adryan tied the game.
Game 29
Braga 4 Beira Mar 0 (rescheduled extra game from earlier)
Sporting 0 Porto 3
Gil Vicente 0 Benfica 0
Rio Ave 3 Maritimo 0
Braga 1 Belenenses 1
Game 29
Braga 4 Beira Mar 0 (rescheduled extra game from earlier)
Sporting 0 Porto 3
Gil Vicente 0 Benfica 0
Rio Ave 3 Maritimo 0
Braga 1 Belenenses 1
Table
Porto 62
Benfica 60
Maritimo 57
--------------
Sporting 54
Braga 52
Setubal 51
Porto 62
Benfica 60
Maritimo 57
--------------
Sporting 54
Braga 52
Setubal 51
Maritimo really blew a big opportunity here, with a win they would have gone 6pts up and clinched a Champions League berth with one game remaining. Instead they face Sporting in the final match needing to not lose by more than a goal. So, Sporting holds their own fate in their hands on the final day for the third year in a row, so far they are 50/50.
The tiebreaker goes like this:
Maritimo beat Sporting in the first match 1-0, they also hold a goal difference edge of about 10 goals. So, if Sporting wins by a goal then the head-to-head record is the same (I tried to find out if they use away goals in the tiebreaker but was unable to determine this), the next tiebreaker is goal difference and Maritimo would win that. So, Sporting needs a 2 goal victory, Maritimo needs anything but a 2 goal loss (or more).
In the title race, Porto need to win or draw against Beira Mar and they clinch the title regardless of what Benfica does against Braga. It seems like the same old story, Porto has an easy final game and Benfica needs them to slip up.
With a tough match at Benfica, Braga could lose their European place altogether if Setubal wins against Estoril.
Final Day
Porto v. Beira Mar
Benfica v. Braga
Maritimo v. Sporting
Vitoria Setubal v. Estoril
For those of you who don't follow Portuguese football, Maritimo aren't supposed to be this good. It's been a bit of an annoyance having to deal with an extra team that I didn't expect to have to deal with. At this point they may have usurped Braga in the "Big 4" of Portugal.
European update next:
The tiebreaker goes like this:
Maritimo beat Sporting in the first match 1-0, they also hold a goal difference edge of about 10 goals. So, if Sporting wins by a goal then the head-to-head record is the same (I tried to find out if they use away goals in the tiebreaker but was unable to determine this), the next tiebreaker is goal difference and Maritimo would win that. So, Sporting needs a 2 goal victory, Maritimo needs anything but a 2 goal loss (or more).
In the title race, Porto need to win or draw against Beira Mar and they clinch the title regardless of what Benfica does against Braga. It seems like the same old story, Porto has an easy final game and Benfica needs them to slip up.
With a tough match at Benfica, Braga could lose their European place altogether if Setubal wins against Estoril.
Final Day
Porto v. Beira Mar
Benfica v. Braga
Maritimo v. Sporting
Vitoria Setubal v. Estoril
For those of you who don't follow Portuguese football, Maritimo aren't supposed to be this good. It's been a bit of an annoyance having to deal with an extra team that I didn't expect to have to deal with. At this point they may have usurped Braga in the "Big 4" of Portugal.
European update next:
Last edited:
Europa League Knockout round of 16
March 10 Fenerbahce 0 Sporting 2
Goals: Adrien, Otavio
Sporting went into a very hostile environment and came out with an impressive 2-0 win. This game kicked off a strong final month in the league.
March 17 Sporting 1 Fenerbahce 0
Goals: Lucas Evangelista
Evangelista scored an "oh by the way" goal in the 88th minute, but the tie was pretty much wrapped up by then. I went into this one knowing that if I scored 1 goal, Fenerbahce would need to score 3, so I sent out an attacking team and was all over them, but just couldn't score. But you know what they say, the best defense is a good offence, as long as the ball was in their end they weren't scoring. Another positive from this tie is that I'll never have to look up the spelling of Fenerbahce again, I think I've got it down by now.
Next round draw, Round of 8 - Quarter Final
Real Madrid v. Braga
Sporting v. Stade Rennais
CSKA Moscow v. Atletico
Tottenham v. Arsenal
I think we got the team we wanted, could have been much, much worse, ask Braga about that.
March 31 Sporting 0 Stade Rennais 1
ex-Porto winger Cristian Rodriguez scored in first half injury time to give the French an important away goal, they shut up shop after that and held on for a 1-0 away win.
April 7th Stade Rennais 1 Sporting 1
Goal: Joao Mario
Stade Rennais had Tariq Hummam sent off on 17 minutes and Sporting went all out for the tying goal, which they got on 32 minutes from Joao Mario. It looked good for Sporting, having the extra man for the remainder after having pulled even, but Wesley Said (Said what?) scored on 68 minutes after a blunder from Alemao and the french escaped with a draw which put them through to the semi-final. Elsewhere, Braga had a huge 3-1 win at the Bernabeu but it wasn't enough to recover from their first leg 3-0 loss to Real Madrid and they were also put out.
Fast forward to the final, it will be Real Madrid v. Stade Rennais
The Champions League final will be defending champions Chelsea v. Juventus
The Europa League performance by Stade Rennais was enough for France to leapfrog Portugal into 5th place once again in the coefficient places, dropping Portugal's 3rd Champions League spot back down to a Best Place 3rd Qualifying Place. (Not for next seasons Champions League, but for next seasons qualification). Portugal just barely stayed ahead of Russia, which would have seen them lose that 3rd Champions League spot altogether.
March 10 Fenerbahce 0 Sporting 2
Goals: Adrien, Otavio
Sporting went into a very hostile environment and came out with an impressive 2-0 win. This game kicked off a strong final month in the league.
March 17 Sporting 1 Fenerbahce 0
Goals: Lucas Evangelista
Evangelista scored an "oh by the way" goal in the 88th minute, but the tie was pretty much wrapped up by then. I went into this one knowing that if I scored 1 goal, Fenerbahce would need to score 3, so I sent out an attacking team and was all over them, but just couldn't score. But you know what they say, the best defense is a good offence, as long as the ball was in their end they weren't scoring. Another positive from this tie is that I'll never have to look up the spelling of Fenerbahce again, I think I've got it down by now.
Next round draw, Round of 8 - Quarter Final
Real Madrid v. Braga
Sporting v. Stade Rennais
CSKA Moscow v. Atletico
Tottenham v. Arsenal
I think we got the team we wanted, could have been much, much worse, ask Braga about that.
March 31 Sporting 0 Stade Rennais 1
ex-Porto winger Cristian Rodriguez scored in first half injury time to give the French an important away goal, they shut up shop after that and held on for a 1-0 away win.
April 7th Stade Rennais 1 Sporting 1
Goal: Joao Mario
Stade Rennais had Tariq Hummam sent off on 17 minutes and Sporting went all out for the tying goal, which they got on 32 minutes from Joao Mario. It looked good for Sporting, having the extra man for the remainder after having pulled even, but Wesley Said (Said what?) scored on 68 minutes after a blunder from Alemao and the french escaped with a draw which put them through to the semi-final. Elsewhere, Braga had a huge 3-1 win at the Bernabeu but it wasn't enough to recover from their first leg 3-0 loss to Real Madrid and they were also put out.
Fast forward to the final, it will be Real Madrid v. Stade Rennais
The Champions League final will be defending champions Chelsea v. Juventus
The Europa League performance by Stade Rennais was enough for France to leapfrog Portugal into 5th place once again in the coefficient places, dropping Portugal's 3rd Champions League spot back down to a Best Place 3rd Qualifying Place. (Not for next seasons Champions League, but for next seasons qualification). Portugal just barely stayed ahead of Russia, which would have seen them lose that 3rd Champions League spot altogether.
Final Match Day - Liga ZON SAGRES
Mourinho to Porto: Be Champions!
Jose Mourinho had a special video message for the Porto players before their game against Beira Mar
View attachment 397314
Porto have won the last 5 Portuguese league titles and 9 of the last 10. they were set to win their 6th consecutive title today. The only other team to win the title in the past 10 seasons, Benfica, were once again trying to dethrone the Dragons.
Elsewhere, in perhaps the biggest game of the day, Maritimo play host to Sporting in a sort of "Champions League Playoff Match"
Other prizes up for grabs were a Europa League spot battle between Braga and Setubal. Also, a ticket out of the league was ready to be issued to one of three teams. Beira Mar (22pts), Pacos Ferreira (21pts) and Belenenses (20pts) were all fighting to not join Aves in relegation.
The action:
Mourinho to Porto: Be Champions!
Jose Mourinho had a special video message for the Porto players before their game against Beira Mar
View attachment 397314
Porto have won the last 5 Portuguese league titles and 9 of the last 10. they were set to win their 6th consecutive title today. The only other team to win the title in the past 10 seasons, Benfica, were once again trying to dethrone the Dragons.
Elsewhere, in perhaps the biggest game of the day, Maritimo play host to Sporting in a sort of "Champions League Playoff Match"
Other prizes up for grabs were a Europa League spot battle between Braga and Setubal. Also, a ticket out of the league was ready to be issued to one of three teams. Beira Mar (22pts), Pacos Ferreira (21pts) and Belenenses (20pts) were all fighting to not join Aves in relegation.
The action:
4 min Setubal Goal! Setubal now sit in the European places!
5th Setubal 54
6th Braga 53
6 min Porto Goal! Juan Fernando Quintero puts Porto up 1-0. The core is shown at the Estadio da Luz and Benfica fans let out a collective grown. There is a huge banner at Benfica saying "Beira Mar: HELP US!"
1st Porto 65
2nd Benfica 61
7 min Belenenses Goal! Belenenses go up 1-0 and go from 15th to 13th, temporarily getting out of a relegation spot.
13th Belenenses 23
14th Beira Mar 22
-----------------
15th Pacos 21
16th Aves relegated
5th Setubal 54
6th Braga 53
6 min Porto Goal! Juan Fernando Quintero puts Porto up 1-0. The core is shown at the Estadio da Luz and Benfica fans let out a collective grown. There is a huge banner at Benfica saying "Beira Mar: HELP US!"
1st Porto 65
2nd Benfica 61
7 min Belenenses Goal! Belenenses go up 1-0 and go from 15th to 13th, temporarily getting out of a relegation spot.
13th Belenenses 23
14th Beira Mar 22
-----------------
15th Pacos 21
16th Aves relegated
20 min Sporting Goal!! Adryan scores at Maritimo to pull Sporting even on points, they need one more to finish 3rd.
3rd Maritimo 57
4th Sporting 57
25 min Belenenses Goal!!! Estoril Goal!!!! The fans on the Southern tip of Lisbon are in full party mode as they go 2-0 up at home to Rio Ave. The Estoril goal v. Setubal drop them out of the Europa places.
5th Braga 53
6th Setubal 52
32 min Pacos Ferreira Goal!!!! Pacos pull even with Belenenses, dropping Beira Mar into relegation.
13th Belenenses 23
14th Pacos 23
-----------------------
15th Beira Mar 22
35-38 minutes A flurry of goals, Porto Goal!! Setubal Goal!!! Benfica Goal!!!! Aves Goal!!!!
Porto 2-0 Beira Mar
Benfica 1-0 Braga
Setubal 2-1 Estoril
Aves 1-1 Pacos
The Porto goal crushes Benfica. They now need Beira Mar to pull themselves out of relegation by scoring 3 goals at Porto, a tall task indeed.
1st Porto 65 (and the tiebreaker)
2nd Benfica 63
As it turned out, Beira Mar has pulled themselves out of a relegation spot by virtue of Aves scoring against Pacos, dropping Pacos into relegation! (Beira Mar have the tiebreaker)
13th Belenenses 23
14th Beira Mar 22
-----------------------
15th Pacos 22
Setubal go back into a Europa League spot
5th Setubal 54
6th Braga 52
41 min Sporting Goal!!!!!!! Belenenses Goal!!!!!
Sporting move into 3rd with the Alan Santos goal. The 2-0 is enough to take the tiebreaker away from Maritimo, who now need to score (possibly twice as Sporting have 2 away goals). Belenenses take a 3-0 lead and can now feel comfortable about staying in the top flight for one more year.
3rd Sporting 57
4th Maritimo 57
47 min Aves Goal!!! Aves are releated but they want to take Pacos down with them!
13th Belenenses 23
14th Beira Mar 22
-----------------------
15th Pacos 21
61 min Setubal Goal!! Setubal take a 3-1 lead, it looks like only a Braga comeback against Benfica can rob them of Europe now!
5th Setubal 54
6th Braga 52
67 min Sporting Goal!!!! Adrien scores for a 3-0 lead, it looks like another shot at Champions League football for Sporting! The downside is that the goal means 425K for Adrien. Ouch! We didn't even really need that goal, I should have subbed him off.
Rio Ave got a nothing goal at Belenenses to make it 1-3 and Benfica scored an insurance foal against Braga in injury time after Braga had a man sent off and the final scores and table were as follows:
(It turns out Braga did make the Europa League, having to enter in the qualifying rounds)
View attachment 397303View attachment 397302
Champions League Group Stage: Porto, Benfica
Champions League Playoff: Sporting
Europa League Group Stage: Maritimo
Europa League Playoff: Setubal
Europa League Qualifying Round: Braga
Relegated: Aves, Pacos
Promoted from Liga 2: Academica (Champions) Leiria
3rd Maritimo 57
4th Sporting 57
25 min Belenenses Goal!!! Estoril Goal!!!! The fans on the Southern tip of Lisbon are in full party mode as they go 2-0 up at home to Rio Ave. The Estoril goal v. Setubal drop them out of the Europa places.
5th Braga 53
6th Setubal 52
32 min Pacos Ferreira Goal!!!! Pacos pull even with Belenenses, dropping Beira Mar into relegation.
13th Belenenses 23
14th Pacos 23
-----------------------
15th Beira Mar 22
35-38 minutes A flurry of goals, Porto Goal!! Setubal Goal!!! Benfica Goal!!!! Aves Goal!!!!
Porto 2-0 Beira Mar
Benfica 1-0 Braga
Setubal 2-1 Estoril
Aves 1-1 Pacos
The Porto goal crushes Benfica. They now need Beira Mar to pull themselves out of relegation by scoring 3 goals at Porto, a tall task indeed.
1st Porto 65 (and the tiebreaker)
2nd Benfica 63
As it turned out, Beira Mar has pulled themselves out of a relegation spot by virtue of Aves scoring against Pacos, dropping Pacos into relegation! (Beira Mar have the tiebreaker)
13th Belenenses 23
14th Beira Mar 22
-----------------------
15th Pacos 22
Setubal go back into a Europa League spot
5th Setubal 54
6th Braga 52
41 min Sporting Goal!!!!!!! Belenenses Goal!!!!!
Sporting move into 3rd with the Alan Santos goal. The 2-0 is enough to take the tiebreaker away from Maritimo, who now need to score (possibly twice as Sporting have 2 away goals). Belenenses take a 3-0 lead and can now feel comfortable about staying in the top flight for one more year.
3rd Sporting 57
4th Maritimo 57
47 min Aves Goal!!! Aves are releated but they want to take Pacos down with them!
13th Belenenses 23
14th Beira Mar 22
-----------------------
15th Pacos 21
61 min Setubal Goal!! Setubal take a 3-1 lead, it looks like only a Braga comeback against Benfica can rob them of Europe now!
5th Setubal 54
6th Braga 52
67 min Sporting Goal!!!! Adrien scores for a 3-0 lead, it looks like another shot at Champions League football for Sporting! The downside is that the goal means 425K for Adrien. Ouch! We didn't even really need that goal, I should have subbed him off.
Rio Ave got a nothing goal at Belenenses to make it 1-3 and Benfica scored an insurance foal against Braga in injury time after Braga had a man sent off and the final scores and table were as follows:
(It turns out Braga did make the Europa League, having to enter in the qualifying rounds)
View attachment 397303View attachment 397302
Champions League Group Stage: Porto, Benfica
Champions League Playoff: Sporting
Europa League Group Stage: Maritimo
Europa League Playoff: Setubal
Europa League Qualifying Round: Braga
Relegated: Aves, Pacos
Promoted from Liga 2: Academica (Champions) Leiria
Last edited:
Liga ZON SAGRES Notes/Awards
So, Braga once again are out of Europe. Estoril, who lost 3-1 to Setubal, originally costing Braga 5th place, has now defeated Braga in the final of the Taca da Portugal, earning them a Europa League spot, the spot which until now belonged to Braga. So, Braga is out, Estoril is in.
Benfica defeated Porto to win the Taca da Liga
I'm getting lots of emails about my future players in Brazil becoming youngest player and/or goalscorer in their teams history. the future is looking bright!
Next years Europa League will feature two Lisbon teams that are used to relegation fights, Estoril and Setubal. Good for them, bad for Portugal's coefficient!
Joao Pedro, once the AMC of the future was loaned back to Santos, ending his attempt at Portuguese citizenship. At 24, he just wasn't developing as I had hoped.
As predicted at the time, Pedro Empis won Goal of the Tournament for his Taca da Liga strike against Penafiel Dec. 27th.
Money Trouble:
View attachment 397293
Europa League Final: Real Madrid 3 Stade Rennais 0
Champions League Final: Chelsea 2 Juventus 0
8 Sporting players were called up for the Portugal U21 team, looking good for 2022? 2026?
Awards (I'll post the runners up if they are from Sporting)
Liga ZON SAGRES Peronality of the Year: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Portuguese Domestic Player of the Year: Pizzi (Benfica)
3rd runner up: Adrien (Sporting)
View attachment 397292
Portuguese Foreign Based Player of the Year: Joao Moutinho (Monaco)
Liga ZON SAGRES Player of the Year: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Most Man of the Match Awards: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Top Striker: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Young Player of the Year: Juan Fernando Quintero (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Goalkeeper of the Year: Eduardo (Sporting)
View attachment 397294
Liga ZON SAGRES Forward of the Year: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Team of the Year:
View attachment 397295
featuring Eduardo (Sporting)
Liga ZON SAGRES Central Defender of the Year: Maicon (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Fullback of the Year: Alex Sandro (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Manager of the Year: Paolo Fonseca (Porto)
Sporting CP Fans Player of the Year: Adrien
(3rd year in a row)
So, Braga once again are out of Europe. Estoril, who lost 3-1 to Setubal, originally costing Braga 5th place, has now defeated Braga in the final of the Taca da Portugal, earning them a Europa League spot, the spot which until now belonged to Braga. So, Braga is out, Estoril is in.
Benfica defeated Porto to win the Taca da Liga
I'm getting lots of emails about my future players in Brazil becoming youngest player and/or goalscorer in their teams history. the future is looking bright!
Next years Europa League will feature two Lisbon teams that are used to relegation fights, Estoril and Setubal. Good for them, bad for Portugal's coefficient!
Joao Pedro, once the AMC of the future was loaned back to Santos, ending his attempt at Portuguese citizenship. At 24, he just wasn't developing as I had hoped.
As predicted at the time, Pedro Empis won Goal of the Tournament for his Taca da Liga strike against Penafiel Dec. 27th.
Money Trouble:
View attachment 397293
Europa League Final: Real Madrid 3 Stade Rennais 0
Champions League Final: Chelsea 2 Juventus 0
8 Sporting players were called up for the Portugal U21 team, looking good for 2022? 2026?
Awards (I'll post the runners up if they are from Sporting)
Liga ZON SAGRES Peronality of the Year: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Portuguese Domestic Player of the Year: Pizzi (Benfica)
3rd runner up: Adrien (Sporting)
View attachment 397292
Portuguese Foreign Based Player of the Year: Joao Moutinho (Monaco)
Liga ZON SAGRES Player of the Year: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Most Man of the Match Awards: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Top Striker: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Young Player of the Year: Juan Fernando Quintero (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Goalkeeper of the Year: Eduardo (Sporting)
View attachment 397294
Liga ZON SAGRES Forward of the Year: Jackson Martinez (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Team of the Year:
View attachment 397295
featuring Eduardo (Sporting)
Liga ZON SAGRES Central Defender of the Year: Maicon (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Fullback of the Year: Alex Sandro (Porto)
Liga ZON SAGRES Manager of the Year: Paolo Fonseca (Porto)
Sporting CP Fans Player of the Year: Adrien
(3rd year in a row)
Last edited:
Sporting were shocked this week as William Carvalho turned down a call up to the Portuguese National team, he then showed up in Angola and played for the Angolan National Team!
View attachment 397283
View attachment 397282
Unbelievable! I'm supposed to be bringing people into the fold, not losing them!
And just like that, the captain (for the past 3 years) is gone!
View attachment 397283
View attachment 397282
Unbelievable! I'm supposed to be bringing people into the fold, not losing them!
And just like that, the captain (for the past 3 years) is gone!
You got that right, they are like the Real Madrid/Barcelona of Portugal. I find that even when I have strong teams in Portugal, I struggle against those two teams.
As long as Portugal keeps three Champions League places I'm content with 3rd for now, I can still attract quality young players as long as I have a Champions League place.
And thanks for the words!
2016 OFFSEASON NOTES
Jackson Martinez (Porto) has won the European Golden Shoe Award. He finished level on points with Sergio Aguero but won the award based on less playing time.
Liga ZON SAGRES has remained 6th in reputation. After a decent run in the Europa League, Sporting has moved up 8 spots to #34 in the club coefficient. In Nation Coefficient, Portugal has, once again, slipped behind France to 6th, meaning that the 3rd spot will enter in the Playoff Round. Russia is just slightly behind, in 7th, and Portugal will need a good European performance this year to stay ahead of Russia.
Portugal was knocked out of Euro 2016 in the group stage and Jorge Jesus was fired. It was a little earlier than I wanted but after the William Carvalho incident I decided to make a play for the Portugal job so that I could cap my youngsters asap.
View attachment 396997View attachment 396996View attachment 396994View attachment 396993View attachment 396992
So, I am now officially the manager of both Sporting Club of Portugal and Portugal
!
Jackson Martinez (Porto) has won the European Golden Shoe Award. He finished level on points with Sergio Aguero but won the award based on less playing time.
Liga ZON SAGRES has remained 6th in reputation. After a decent run in the Europa League, Sporting has moved up 8 spots to #34 in the club coefficient. In Nation Coefficient, Portugal has, once again, slipped behind France to 6th, meaning that the 3rd spot will enter in the Playoff Round. Russia is just slightly behind, in 7th, and Portugal will need a good European performance this year to stay ahead of Russia.
Portugal was knocked out of Euro 2016 in the group stage and Jorge Jesus was fired. It was a little earlier than I wanted but after the William Carvalho incident I decided to make a play for the Portugal job so that I could cap my youngsters asap.
View attachment 396997View attachment 396996View attachment 396994View attachment 396993View attachment 396992
So, I am now officially the manager of both Sporting Club of Portugal and Portugal
!
