TAKING BURNLEY TO THE TOP!

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Branaldo9

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TAKING BURNLEY TO THE TOP!​


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SEAN DYCHE RESIGNS, PETER BRANAGAN UNVEILED AS NEW MANAGER

Newly promoted Burnley have announced the departure of manager Sean Dyche, who having done an outstanding job in helping guide The Clarets back to the Premier League at the first time of asking, has made the sudden decision to resign from the role after over 3 and a half years with the club. In his place, Burnley have decided to take a real risk with inexperienced manager Peter Branagan signing a 1 year contract which will see him take up his first managerial role at the age of just 27.


CLUB HISTORY

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Looking back at the history of Burnley, they have won the top division of English Football on 2 occasions (1920/21 and 1959/60). They have also won a solitary FA Cup but this came over 100 years ago in the 1913/14 season. Other noteworthy triumphs include 3 Championship titles, 1 League One title, 1 League Two title and 2 Community/Charity Shields.

Looking at the last 20 years, Burnley were promoted from League One back in 1999/2000 and having spent 9 years in the 2nd tier of English football, were promoted to the Premier League in 2008/09. However, they were relegated in their first season in 2009/10. In similar fashion, Burnley were promoted to the Premier League again in 2013/14 and were relegated again in 2014/15. Having been promoted back to the Premier League at the first time of asking in 2015/16, it is now my task to ensure that we remain in the Premier League this season and do not suffer the same fate as under both previous spells in the top division of English Football.


MANAGERIAL PROFILE

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Looking at my managerial profile, I have an Amateur football background having never played professionally. I have my National coaching licenses and will be looking to study for the Continental qualifications throughout my time with the club. I start out my managerial experience at a Premier League club on a wage of £11,250 per week which is the lowest in the division by a considerable distance

FINANCIAL ANALYSIS

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Analysing the finances of the club, we are currently over £5.5 million in debt but I have somehow been given a transfer budget of over £10 million and there is over £200,000 per week free on the wage budget allocation.


MEDIA PREDICTIONS

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The media are predicting that we will defy the odds and remain in the Premier League this season as they have us down to finish 17th which would see us narrowly avoid the drop.

From a Financial standpoint, we are currently valued at £164 million. I am hoping to help improve this over my time with the club with on field success.

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The bookmakers have placed us as one of the favourites to be relegated with odds of 11/2 to be one of the 3 unfortunate clubs to suffer the drop this season. With Man City and Arsenal the favourites respectively, we are 1000/1 outsiders. Surely, lightening can't strike twice with the heroics of Leicester City last season.


PRESEASON FRIENDLY ROUNDUP

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We decided to tour around Europe in Austria, France and Germany and were unbeaten in our 7 preseason friendlies, with the only blemish coming in our only French game of the tour against RC Lens. Very happy with our preparations and hopefully we can carry this preseason form into the new season.


TRANSFERS - SUMMER 2016/17

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Having allowed George Boyd and Scott Arfield to leave for a combined fee of over £9 million pound, I had almost £20 million in the transfer budget.

I immediately identified LB as a priority as Stephen Ward is my only natural LB, although Robbie Brady could as fill in there. Argentinian U20 international, Nicolas Tagliafico was signed for a bargain £1.8 million and the 23 year old will battle with Stephen Ward for the LB position this season.

Next, I went with experience in bringing in Italian international, Alessio Cerci, from Atletico Madrid for just £2 million. I expect Alessio to battle with Johann Berg Gudmundsson for the RW position but Alessio can also play up front if necessary.

My 3rd signing was my most expensive of the window as winger Valdivia was signed from Brazilian club Internacional for £4.7 million. The left winger will provide fierce competition with Robbie Brady for the LW position and I now feel I am covered on the wings with 4 quality options.

My 4th and final signing of the transfer window was another South American as Argentinian Joaquin Arzura was signed for £1.9 million from River Plate. The 23 year old defensive midfielder will provide a quality backup option for Steven Defour in the DM position.


SQUAD 2016/17 SEASON

GK - Tom Heaton (C), Paul Robinson
RB - Jon Flanagan, Matt Lowton
LB - Nicolas Tagliafico, Stephen Ward
CB - Michael Keane, Ben Mee (VC), James Tarkowski, Kevin Long
DM - Steven Defour, Joaquin Arzura
CM - Jeff Hendrick, Joey Barton, Dean Marney, Ashley Westwood
RW - Alessio Cerci, Johann Berg Gudmundsson
LW - Robbie Brady, Valdivia
FW - Andre Gray, Sam Vokes, Ashley Barnes​
 
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AUGUST 2016 REVIEW:​
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Excellent start to the season with a 3-1 win at home to Southampton. Home form will be crucial if we are to survive this season and such a strong performance to open the season was pleasing. Goals from Jeff Hendrick and a double from Andre Gray.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Andre Gray

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Tough first away game of the season with a trip to the Etihad Stadium to face Manchester City. A really professional performance from our side, limited Man City for most of the game. An 80th minute strike from Yaya Toure gave Man City the 1-0 win but I was proud of the effort and organisation of my team to frustrate and restrict Man City for most of the game.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Michael Keane

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A goalfest in our 2nd round tie at home to Accrington Stanley in the League Cup. The star of the show was new signing Valdivia who was making his first start for the club. Having scored 2 goals in the first 2 minutes, the first coming after only 16 seconds, Valdivia completed his hat trick before half time and scored a 4th before being substituted shortly after the hour mark. His replacement, Johann Berg Gudmundsson, scored the 5th and Sam Vokes completed the rout.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Valdivia

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Our final game of the month was at home to Middlesbrough in the League and we displayed another excellent attacking performance with a 4-2 win. Valdivia followed up his midweek heroics with his first 2 league goals for the club, Alessio Cerci scored a first in his first league start and Andre Gray netted his third league goal in 3 appearances.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Valdivia

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A bit of bad news coming out of the win at home to Middlesbrough with Jeff Hendrick injuring his knee cap and he will now miss 2-3 weeks which should keep him out of our next 2 leagues fixtures, away to West Ham and at home to Arsenal.

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The League Cup 3rd round draw presents us with an away tie to Cardiff City who have made an average start to the Championship season with 6 points from their opening 5 games.

MONTHLY REVIEW:

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2 wins from our opening 3 league games with our only defeat coming away to Man City. It has been a very encouraging start to the season with us scoring 13 goals in our opening 4 games of the season. Although it is the very early stages of the season, we are currently sitting in 6th place in the Premier League and can feel very positive heading into September.

PLAYER OF THE MONTH: Valdivia - Having remained an unused substitute in the opening game of the season and only playing the final 4 minutes against Man City, it seems strange putting Valdivia forward for player of the month. However, his performances in his 2 starts for the club have been outstanding. 4 goals against Accrington Stanley followed by another 2 against Middlesbrough have made Valdivia an instant hit with the club and long may this form continue.

TOP LEAGUE GOALSCORERS: Andre Gray - 3, Valdivia - 2

MONTHLY MANAGERIAL RECORD: 3 Wins, 0 Draws, 1 Defeat (75% win percentage)​
 
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Great presentation for this post. A bit like a written club end of season wrap up dvd!
I will be reading this in the future!
 
neon76 said:
Great presentation for this post. A bit like a written club end of season wrap up dvd!
I will be reading this in the future!
Click to expand...

Haha end of season wrap up dvd! Thanks neon76 your comment is much appreciated and glad that you are enjoying the thread.
 
SEPTEMBER 2016 REVIEW:​



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Valdivia continued his excellent form with another early strike to give us the lead against West Ham after only 12 minutes. However, goals from Sofiane Feghouli and Alvaro Arbeloa gave West Ham a half time lead. Thankfully, Alessio Cerci popped up with an equaliser 5 minutes into the 2nd half to ensure we came away from the London Stadium with a hard earned point.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Alessio Cerci

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Disappointing to have Valdivia out for 2 weeks with an ankle ligament injury. His form has been excellent since stepping into the starting lineup with an emphatic 7 goals in his 3 starts for the club. He joins long-term absentee Ashley Barnes and Jeff Hendrick on the treatment table. Good news is Jeff Hendrick should miss only 1 more game which is at home to Arsenal in the League.

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A hard working first half performance at home to Arsenal in the League was rewarded with a first half lead thanks to a first goal of the season and first for the club for Robbie Brady. Olivier Giroud equalised early on in the 2nd half to ensure that we drew our 2nd straight league game but it's 2 hard earned and crucial points.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Michael Keane

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We came away from the Cardiff City stadium with a comfortable 2-0 win with goals from Andre Gray and the returning Jeff Hendrick. Great to have Hendrick back in the side after injury and we now await the 4th round draw to see can we continue our cup run.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Michael Keane

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The draw for the 4th round of the League Cup has provided us with a home tie against another Championship side in Nottingham Forest. Forest have been flying high in the Championship and currently sit in 3rd place behind Newcastle and Brentford after 10 games. I have no doubt they will provide us with a tough test and they have already knocked out Premier League champions, Leicester City.

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We finished the month with the shock result of the month, with an away win to Everton. Having put in a solid defensive performance, limiting Everton to 1 shot on target, we managed to ****** a late win through Andre Gray. I was delighted with this result as in our other 2 games against big clubs in Arsenal and Man City, we remained sold, limiting the opposition but didn't come away with the result that I felt we deserved. A great way to finish the month.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Michael Keane

MONTHLY REVIEW:

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We continued our solid start to the season with a win and 2 draws from our 3 league fixtures in September. Considering we played West Ham and Everton away and Arsenal at home, 5 points is an excellent return. We are currently 7th in the Premier League having only lost 1 of our opening fixtures. This is beyond the start I could have expected having taken over as manager. Hopefully this can continue into October.

PLAYER OF THE MONTH: Michael Keane - The club had a really solid monthly defensive and Michael was at the heart of this. He was awared with Man of the Match in 3 of our 4 games in September and it is obvious while all the big Premier League clubs have a major interest in the centre half.

TOP LEAGUE GOALSCORERS (SEASON): Andre Gray - 4, Valdivia - 3, Alessio Cerci - 2

MONTHLY MANAGERIAL RECORD: 2 Wins, 2 Draws, O Defeats (50% win rate)​
 
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OCTOBER 2016 REVIEW:


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In what was one of the toughest fixtures of the season on paper, travelling away to Chelsea, we put on our performance of the season so far and came away with not only an absolute shock but an emphatic 3-0 victory. Having led through a first half strike from Andre Gray, we were given a bit of fortune thanks to a red card to Cesar Azpilicueta early in the 2nd half. From there we looked comfortable against 10 men with Jeff Hendrick adding a 2nd before Andre Gray completed the rout. Could not imagine this result before the game but absolutely delighted nonetheless.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Andre Gray

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Another injury for Valdivia, this time a pulled hamstring will keep him out for 2 weeks. Heading into an international break, I'm hoping Valdivia will recover in time for our trip to Anfield after the international break.

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Very happy for Michael Keane as he made his first appearance for England in a 2-0 away win against Malta. Michael partnered Chris Smalling at centre back and helped England keep an expected clean sheet in his debut. Hopefully this will the first of many international appearances for Michael and after the start to the season he has made, his call up was well deserved.

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Glad to have Ashley Barnes back after 4 months out with hamstring issues. We will have to ease him back into the team after such a long absence and it will be tough for him to break back into the starting lineup with the superb start Andre Gray has made to the season.

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Our first game back from the international break was another tough assignment with a trip to Anfield to face the high flying Liverpool who currently sit top of the table. Unfortunately, Valdivia did not recover from his hamstring injury in time for this game so Republic of Ireland international, Robbie Brady came into the side in his place. The knack we have been showing against the big teams continued with a second half Andre Gray strike giving us a surprising 1-0 victory which puts us up to 3rd in the league. As a Liverpool fan, I was delighted to come away from my first visit to Anfield as a manager with a victory.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Andre Gray

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Our first home league game of the month with Tottenham Hotspur the visitors. Again we showed great resolve and organisation at the back which we have shown in almost all games so far this season to restrict Tottenham to only 4 shots on target. Valdivia was restored to the starting line-up after injury and he instantly made an impact with his free kick finding the net after only 3 minutes. This goal proved to be the only goal of the game and ensured that we came away from 3 of the toughest consecutive games we face this season with 3 successive wins.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Valdivia

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Another emphatic win at home to Nottingham Forest in the 4th round of the League Cup. Nottingham Forest have made a great start to their Championship campaign so to come away with a dominant 4-0 is extremely pleasing. A hat-trick from Andre Gray and another fantastic finish from Jeff Hendrick ensured our place in the hat for the quarter final.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Andre Gray

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Sam Vokes future at the club looks uncertain as he is demanding first team football which I cannot not guarantee at this moment. Having not featured in our opening 9 league games of the season and only starting in 1 League Cup game it is understandable that Sam is considering his future and I would be willing to let him leave in the January window with the return of Ashley Barnes.

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Delighted to have got a home draw in the quarter final of the League Cup as we drew Newcastle United. In the other quarter final ties, Stoke host Southampton, Championship Fulham travel to Manchester United and the tie of the round sees Tottenham Hotspur entertain Liverpool.

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Our final game of the month, at home to Stoke City, turned out to be the only game of the month were we conceded a goal as we fell behind to a 1st minute Saido Berahino strike. However, we bounced back excellently with goals from Valdivia and an Andre Gray giving us a 2-1 win which placed us as surprising leaders of the Premier League to end the month.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Valdivia

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Another player looking to leave the club is Joey Barton. The controversial Liverpudlian, has not made much of an impact for the club since he made his return after leaving Rangers in the summer. He has made 7 league appearances and is an important squad player for the club.

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I have been awarded with the October manager of the month thanks to our heroic performances throughout the month. Delighted with this and hope that we can continue this excellent run which we are currently on.

MONTHLY REVIEW:

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Cannot believe that we currently sit top of the table with 23 points from our opening 10 games of the season. Having played Arsenal, Everton, Man City, Chelsea, Tottenham and Liverpool in this sequence of fixtures, it's an unbelievable return of points to have at this early stage of the season. Let's try to reach the 40th point mark as soon as possible and see where we can go from there. It's been an excellent start to my career with my only defeat falling at the hands of Man City. Outside of the Premier League, we also have a League Cup quarter final to look forward to at home to Newcastle United.

PLAYER OF THE MONTH - Andre Gray

No doubt about the player of the month with Andre Gray picking up the man of the match award in 3 of our 5 fixtures and scoring on 7 occasions throughout the month including a hat trick against Nottingham Forest and a double against Chelsea. Andre already has 8 league goals and 4 goals in the League Cup this season.

TOP LEAGUE GOALSCORERS

Andre Gray - 8
Valdivia - 5
Alessio Cerci - 2
Jeff Hendrick - 2

MONTHLY MANAGERIAL RECORD

5 Wins, 0 Draws, 0 Defeats (100% win rate)​
 
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Cracking start to the season mate! Fingers crossed players don't upset the apple cart too much!
 
neavie pops23 said:
Cracking start to the season mate! Fingers crossed players don't upset the apple cart too much!
Click to expand...

Cheers mate! It's been an unbelievable start considering the fixtures. Valdivia has been class and a bargain at only £4.7 million. Wouldn't be too disappointed to lose either Sam Vokes or Joey Barton in the January window.
 
NOVEMBER 2016 REVIEW:​
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A 6th consecutive league victory away to Swansea City put us 5 points clear at the top of the Premier League. Again, we came out of the blocks really early and took a deserved lead through Valdivia after only 6 minutes. Further goals from Alessio Cerci and Jeff Hendrick put the game to bed either side of half time. Borja Baston pulled a goal back for Swansea but the game finished 3-1 and was comfortable in the end.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Nicolas Tagliafico

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Another tough game against one of the Big 7 sides in the Premier League with the visit to Turf Moor of Manchester United. Having remained unbeaten in the last 12 games and with 6 straight Premier League wins, I was feeling confident of avoiding defeat heading into the game. Manchester United had not won in their last 4 fixtures including defeats in 3 and were sitting in 7th place in the table. However, in a game which had little between the sides, Manchester United came away with all 3 points thanks to a 59th minute winner from Anthony Martial. Disappointed that our winning run and undefeated streak has came to an end but absolutely delighted to have achieved such consistency throughout the run.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Nicolas Tagliafico

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Unfortunately, Tom Heaton was substituted in the 2nd half of our league fixture against Manchester United with an injury and the news isn't good with Tom fracturing his wrist. He will be out for between 5-7 weeks and the experienced Paul Robinson will cover in his place.

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Delighted to have been offered a new deal with the club so early into my tenure. I had no hesitation in signing a 12 month extension to my 1 year contract and am now contracted until June 2018. I have been given a £1,250 increase to my original wage and will now be paid £12,500 per week.

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A trip to the Hawthorns to face West Brom was always going to be difficult and considering they have only lost 2 league games so far this season, I was under no illusions of the difficulty of coming away with 3 points. Having taking the lead just before half time thanks to a Alessio Cerci strike, I was disappointed to concede with only 12 minutes to go and only come away with a 1-1 draw. From a 5 point lead at the top of the table, we are now 2nd and a point behind Arsenal. It shows the difficulty of the Premier League to have been punished for dropping points in 2 consecutive games.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Alessio Cerci

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Our League Cup quarter final tie at home to Newcastle United was a tight battle which was decided by another cracking strike from Valdivia. The Brazilian magician has popped up with some vital goals already this season and hasn't taken any time at all to settle into English football. This was his 11th goal of the season in all competitions, including 5 in the League Cup. We will have a semi-final double header to look forward to in the New Year which is more than I could have expected at the start of the season.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Nicolas Tagliafico

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Following in from signing my new contract with the club, I have penned down Andre Gray to a new 5 year deal with the club keeping him contracted until June 2021 on £40,000 per week. Andre has been terrific so far this season with 8 Premier League goals and fully deserves this new deal.

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The draw for the League Cup sees us paired up with Stoke City. I am happy with this draw as we avoid both Liverpool and Manchester United who were drawn against each other in the other semi final.

MONTHLY REVIEW:

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In comparison with the first 3 months of the season, this has been our worst month so far with 1 win from our 3 league fixtures. However, we fell to a 1-0 defeat to Manchester United, had a tough away draw at West Brom and won our other fixture against Swansea. We have been impressive and tough to beat and fully deserve to sit in 2nd place in the Premier League. Only 2 defeats from 13 league games and 27 points from a possible 39, I couldn't have expected this before the season started. We are also in the semi final of the League Cup and have a real shot of making it to a Wembley final in my first season with the club.

PLAYER OF THE MONTH - Nicolas Tagliafico

Easy decision for my player of the month as Nicolas has had a fantastic month, having picked up the man of the match award in 3 of the clubs 4 fixtures in November. Having moved to Europe from Argentinian side Independiente, Nicolas has settled in really well to the Premier League and has been an instant asset to the club as the first choice left back. Hopefully his form will earn him what would be a deserved call up to the Argentinian national team.

TOP LEAGUE GOALSCORERS

Andre Gray - 8
Valdivia - 6
Alessio Cerci 4
Jeff Hendrick - 3

MONTHLY MANAGERIAL RECORD

2 Wins, 1 Draw, 1 Defeat (50% win rate)​
 
DECEMBER 2016 REVIEW:

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It's going to be a difficult month with 7 league fixtures crammed into the busy festive period. Very happy to get off to a good start with a 2-1 win at home to Bournemouth. We fell behind to a Michael Keane own goal just after the half hour mark but responded excellently with goals from Andre Gray and Ben Mee giving us a half time lead. We managed to hold on to the lead to pick up a valuable 3 points after dropping points in our last 2 league games to Manchester United and West Brom.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Ben Mee

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Disatrous news as Joaquin Arzura damaged his achilles tendon and will be out for up to 5 months. Joaquin has been a key member of our starting eleven this season since signing during the summer and this is a devastating injury for both Joaquin and the club.

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Ashley Barnes looks set to leave the club as he is looking for first team football which I cannot guarantee. He follows in the footsteps of Sam Vokes who has already made a similar request. Very difficult for either of them to get into the side with the form of Andre Gray this season.

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I brought Joey Barton back into the side to replace the injured Joaquin Arzura for the away trip to Hull City, moving Steven Defour into the defensive midfield position and partnering Joey next to Jeff Hendrick in centre midfield. However, the result was a disappointing 0-0 draw. Not many chances between either side but the point is definitely more valuable for Hull who are currently 19th in the Premier League and facing a real relegation battle.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Ben Mee

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Positive news coinciding with the return to the starting eleven for Joey Barton, he has also decided to drop his request to leave the club. With the long term injury to Joaquin Arzura, Joey's got a more important role with the side in the current months as he will be an integral part of team in Joaquin's absence.

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The draw for the 3rd round of the FA Cup sees us travel to Portman Road to face Ipswich Town who are currently struggling in 20th position in the Championship.

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Another injury with Stephen Ward twisting his ankle. He is expected to be out for up to 2 weeks and joins Tom Heaton and Joaquin Arzura on the injured list. Joey Barton is also absent at the moment and will miss our next league fixture which is the away trip to Crystal Palace

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With Joey Barton absent for this game, Dean Marney was handed a rare start but he couldn't help the team from falling to a disappointing 1-0 defeat. There was nothing between the sides and similar to our last game, away to Hull City, there was not much in terms of clear cut chances. It was a Yohan Cabaye penalty early in the 2nd half which decided the game and it's now just 1 win in our last 5 league fixtures.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Michael Keane

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Another absolutely devastating injury with our talisman, Andre Gray, facing an extended period on the sidelines after suffering a torn calf muscle which will keep him out of the side for between 3-4 months. The injuries are starting to mount up but it's awful news for Andre who has been terrific this season with 13 goals in 18 appearances in all competitions this season including 9 in the Premier League. His loss will give opportunity to Sam Vokes and Ashley Barnes who have made no secret about their desire to claim more first team football.

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With the combination of poor recent form and the loss of Andre Gray, I was in a pessimistic mood heading into our next league fixture at home to Leicester City. However, the team responded emphatically and delivered our biggest win of the season. I decided to move Alessio Cerci up top in place of Andre Gray and bring Johann Berg Gudmundsson into his place on the right wing and this change had instant dividends with Cerci opening the scoring on 11 minutes. To further highlight the benefits of the tweaks to the side, it was Gudmundsson who put us 2-0 up before half time. The second half saw further strikes from Valdivia and Michael Keane as we picked up a much needed 3 points which keeps us in 2nd place in the Premier League table.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Valdivia

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Back-to-back league wins with a 2-1 victory at home to Sunderland. An 8th league goal of the season for Valdivia and a 71st minute strike from Jeff Hendrick ensured we picked up another 3 points which puts us on 37 for the season after only 18 games which is an impressive return for a newly promoted side. 3 more points and we reach to magic 40 point mark which should be enough to ensure survival.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Valdivia

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A 1-0 defeat away to Watford at on Boxing Day ensured it's now 4 consecutive away games without a win in the league. A poor performance as we never got going but with us right in the middle of the busy festive period, I really should have rotated the squad a bit more than I have.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Nicolas Tagliafico

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Finally some good news on the injury front with the return to fitness of our captain Tom Heaton who has missed 6 weeks with a fractured wrist. With the long term injuries to Joaquin Arzura and Andre Gray this month, I'm happy to have some positive news to close out the month.

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A tough New Year's Eve fixture at home to Manchester City as we closed out 2016 with a narrow 2-1 defeat. Michael Keane scored his 2nd own goal of the month and Sergio Aguero followed this up with a 2nd to give Man City an early 2-0 lead after only 18 minutes. With Nicolas Tagliafico suspended for this game and Stephen Ward out injured, I brought Robbie Brady into the side at left back and it was his cross which set up Michael Keane who headed home with 10 minutes to go to give us hope of clinching a point. Man City had been reduced to 10 men after Bacary Sagna was sent off with 10 minutes to play but unfortunately, we couldn't capitalise on this after Michael Keane gave us hope.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Michael Keane

MONTHLY REVIEW:

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A congested December period with 7 league fixtures and unfortunately, with injuries and a small squad, we had an inconsistent month with 3 wins, 1 draw and 3 defeats this month. Despite our wobbles in December, we still remain the Champions League places as we currently sit in 4th place, 2 points clear of Tottenham Hotspur who lie below us in 5th place. Amazingly, Arsenal are dominant at the top of the table with an 11 point lead over Liverpool and Manchester United who are 2nd and 3rd respectively and have also won in incredible 11 consecutive league games.

Another hectic month to come in January with 8 games including our FA Cup 3rd round tie away to Ipswich Town, both legs of our League Cup semi final against Stoke City and league fixtures against Southampton, Middlesbrough, West Ham, Everton and Chelsea. This will no doubt be a defining month in our season so hopefully we can put in some big performances.

PLAYER OF THE MONTH - Valdivia

Another good month from our Brazilian magician with his 7th and 8th goals of the season and a couple of man of the match performances to go with it. It was a close choice for player of the month this month as Michael Keane also had an impressive month but his 2 own goals proved to be pivotal in my decision. Valdivia has has an excellent season so far with 13 goals in 19 appearances in all competitions and 6 assists to his name.

TOP GOALSCORERS SEASON:

Andre Gray - 9
Valdivia - 8
Alessio Cerci - 5
Jeff Hendrick - 4

MANAGERIAL WIN RATE:

3 Wins, 1 Draw, 3 Defeats (43% win rate)

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Going into the January transfer window, our finances have greatly improved with a positive balance of £10 million in comparison with the -£5 million which we had at the start of my career with the club. With the expected departure of either Sam Vokes and/or Ashley Barnes and the long-term injury to Andre Gray, I may need to dip into the transfer market for a new striker.​
 
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JANUARY 2017 REVIEW:​
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Not the greatest start to the month with a 2-1 away defeat Southampton in the league. With only 2 days between this fixture and our home defeat to Man City on New Year's Eve, I knew it was going to be tough, especially due to me sticking with the same side which lost to City. Joey Barton scored his first goal of the season to give us the lead just after the hour mark but 2 late strikes from former Burnley striker Charlie Austin brought us our 3rd successive league defeat.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Joey Barton

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Our bad form continued with a shock 3-1 defeat to Ipswich in the 3rd round of the FA Cup. We never got going in this game and went in at the break 2-0 down. Tom Lawrence made it 3-0 just after the restart and an instant reply from Alessio Cerci proved to be just a consolation as it finished 3-1. Disappointing exit from the FA Cup and slipping in the Premier League, this has been my toughest couple of weeks as manager of the club.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Alessio Cerci

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Our first departure of the January transfer window as Sam Vokes signed for MLS side, Houston Dynamo. Sam had been unhappy with the lack of first team appearances this season so I was very happy to receive £8 million for his transfer. I'm hoping to dip into the transfer market for a new striker to not only replace Sam but also the injured Andre Gray.

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Delighted to have completed the signing of Ajax sensation Kasper Dolberg. The 19 year old Danish international signed for £5 million having scored 8 goals in 18 league appearances in his first season as a senior player for the club. I'm hopeful that Kasper will grow with the club over the coming years and the £5 million spent should be seen as a real bargain.

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Another departure for the club with right back, Tendayi Darikwa, signing for Championship mainstays Derby County for £500,000. Tendayi hadn't made an appearance for the first team this season and at 25 years of age, I was more than happy to allow him to move on for his benefit.

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Another injury for the club with Alessio Cerci out for up to 2 weeks with a twisted knee. It looks like new signing Kasper Dolberg will be thrown straight into the side to fill in for Alessio who has been playing up front since Andre Gray's injury.

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Positive result in the first leg of our League Cup semi final at the Bet 365 stadium against Stoke City. After 4 consecutive defeats, I was very happy to come away with a draw which presents us with an excellent opportunity to make the League Cup final. Kasper Dolberg made his debut but was kept quiet in a game which had very little in terms of goal mouth action.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Michael Keane

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Delighted to get back to winning ways with a 2-1 win away to Middlesbrough in the league. I decided to rest the out of form Valdivia and brought Robbie Brady into the side to take his place and it was Brady who opened the scoring with a penalty just after the half hour mark. Johann Berg Gudmundsson made it 2-0 after 59 minutes and although Middlesbrough pulled a goal back through a Nicolas Tagliafico own goal, we held onto to pick up a massive win which got our league campaign back on track after 3 consecutive defeats.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Michael Keane

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We completed our 2nd signing of the transfer window with Real Madrid midfielder Marco Asensio signing on loan until the end of the season. As Marco had made 6 league appearances for Real Madrid this season, I was surprised to see him available for loan and I see it as a real coup for the club to have him come in for the remainder of the season.

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The club and Dean Marney have mutually agreed to terminate his contract with the club which still had 6 months remaining. Dean was adamant that he wanted to leave the club in the January transfer window and having offered him around, there was no club interested in making a move so I felt that the best option was for him to have his contract cancelled with the club. Having signed Marco Asensio, Dean had moved further down the pecking order and hopefully he will find a new club where he will be in a position to receive more opportunities than I could guarantee.

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Another positive league result with us gaining a valuable point with a 1-1 draw at home to Everton. Although, we took the lead through a second half strike from Johann Berg Gudmundsson, it only last 1 minute with Romelu Lukaku striking back immediately for Everton.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Johann Berg Gudmundsson

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WE HAVE MADE THE FINAL OF THE LEAGUE CUP! What an amazing season we are having and it has been capped off with a trip to Wembley following our 1-0 victory over Stoke City in the 2nd leg of our League Cup semi-final. Having played 180 minutes and nothing separating the sides with consecutive 0-0 results, it seemed like we were heading to an inevitable penalty shootout. However, with 1 minute of extra time remaining, Johann Berg Gudmundsson popped up with a dramatic late winner to send us through to the final to face Manchester United who overcame Liverpool in the other semi-final.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Nicolas Tagliafico

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Another injury for Tom Heaton, this time with him picking up a broken finger which will keep him out for between 2-3 weeks. Experienced backup, Paul Robinson, will have to step in again for the next couple of weeks.

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We finished off the month with a potential game of the season candidate at home to Chelsea in the league. Having fallen 2-0 behind after only 11 minutes through goals from Cesc Fabregas and Pedro, I was worried of us being on the end of a hammering. However, goals from Marco Asensio and Valdivia brought us in at half time level. Early in the second half, Kasper Dolberg scored his first goal for the club to put us 3-2 up and Marco Asensio scored his second to make it 4-2 with 5 minutes to go. Pedro pulled one back with 1 minute to go but we held on for a huge 3 points and another big scalp with us doing the double over Chelsea this season.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Marco Asensio

MONTHLY REVIEW:

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Having picked up 7 points from a possible 12 in the league, we got ourselves back on track this month following a poor run of form at the end of December. We are still occupying a place in the Top 4 with us currently sitting one point above 5th place Liverpool in 4th. On the flip side, looking above us 2nd placed Tottenham are 2 points ahead of us and Manchester United are a point ahead of us in 3rd. Making the League Cup final is a fantastic achievement for the club and we can look forward to a trip to Wembley at the end of February. The only major disappointment this month was our embarrassing elimination from the FA Cup away to Ipswich in the 3rd round. However, our outstanding league position and our League Cup adventure is more than enough to make up for this.

We have a tough run of league fixtures to come in February with 2 trips to North London to face both Tottenham and Arsenal and home games against West Ham and Liverpool. We finish out the month with the League Cup final against Manchester United.

PLAYER OF THE MONTH - Johann Berg Gudmundsson

Johann had an excellent month with 3 goals, one of which was our most important of the season, sealing our place in the League Cup final. Having spent the majority of the first half of the season outside of the starting lineup, Johann has shown a tremendous attitude to work his way into the picture and has been fantastic since returning to the side.

TOP LEAGUE GOALSCORERS:

Andre Gray - 9
Valdivia - 9
Alessio Cerci - 5
Jeff Hendrick - 4
Johann Berg Gudmundsson - 3

MONTHLY MANAGERIAL RECORD

3 Wins, 2 Draws, 2 Defeats (43% win rate)

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We close out the transfer window with a fairly healthy balance of £7.7 million. The sale of Sam Vokes to Houston Dynamo for £8 million was a fantastic deal for the club and I feel that the £5 million signing of Kasper Dolberg from Ajax will be a huge bargain for the club.

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Looking at the transfer window, Yannick Carrasco completed the biggest transfer of the window as he signed for Tottenham Hotspur from Atletico Madrid for £32 million. Liverpool spent the most in the window with Kieran Tierney (Celtic), Kenny Tete and Davy Klaasen (Ajax) and Jens Toornstra (Feyenoord) all signing for combined fees of over £50 million.​
 
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FEBRUARY 2017 REVIEW:​


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Going into this game, Arsenal were 7 points clear at the top of the Premier League but we had also came off the back of an unbelievable victory against Chelsea. We put in another fantastic performance to come away from the Emirates with a 2-1 victory. An own goal from Gabriel Paulista put is 1-0 up early in the second half but Mesut Ozil quickly equalised. With the game looking to end 1-1, Johann Berg Gudmundsson popped up with yet another dramatic late winner to give us a monumental 3 points and another big scalp in the league.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Ben Mee

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Home to West Ham next in the league and it finished 1-1 with Alessio Cerci equalised late on after being behind through an early strike from January signing, Andrea Petagna in the 5th minute. Another decent point which keeps us in and around the Champions League places.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Ben Mee

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An injury to Kasper Dolberg puts his availability for the League Cup final in doubt after he suffered a pulled hamstring keeping him out for up to 2 weeks. He joins Tom Heaton as a doubt for the final with Andre Gray and Joaquin Arzura definitely unavailable.

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We put in a fantastic performance away to Tottenham at White Hart Lane but failed to come away with anything as a first half Harry Kane strike sealing the 3 points for Tottenham. This result dropped us out of the top 4 for the first team since the early stages of the season.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Michael Keane

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Sam Vokes finally completed his £8million move to the MLS. This transfer has broken our record transfer fee received which beats the previous record of £7 million when Jay Rodriguez moved to Southampton in 2012.

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A really poor defeat at home to Liverpool in the league. With one eye on the League Cup final, we put in a terrible performance falling to a 3-0 defeat. A Roberto Firmino double and a James Milner strike put Liverpool 2nd in the league and cut us further adrift of the top 4.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Alessio Cerci

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More injuries with Robbie Brady and Matt Lowton both ruled out of the League Cup final with a damaged heel and twisted knee respectively. It's looking like Tom Heaton will be available for the final which is some positive news.

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It's not only my first final as a manager but it is also the first League Cup final in the history of the club. Great to be part of this history and looking forward to the battle against Manchester United.

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What an unbelievable cup final this turned out to be and you would be hard pressed finding a better final. Having gone ahead on 3 occasions, Manchester United pulled level on 3 occasions to bring the game to extra time with the game level at 3-3. Goals from Johann Berg Gudmundsson, Alessio Cerci and Valdivia gave us an unexpected lead on 3 different occasions. Wayne Rooney scored a late strike to bring the game to extra time. Early into extra time, Jeff Hendrick scored a fantastic goal to put us 4-3 ahead. However, goals from Ashley Young and Phil Jones destroyed our chances of victory and gave the trophy to Manchester United. Disappointing having been ahead 4 times and still not coming away with the trophy.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Valdivia


MONTHLY REVIEW:

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Aside from the win at Arsenal and the unbelievable League Cup final performance, it has been a disappointing month for the club with defeats to Tottenham and Liverpool hampering our chances of European football next season and dropping us down to our lowest position since August with Southampton moving ahead of us into 5th on goal difference. Arsenal are 6 points clear at the top of the table ahead of a resurgent Liverpool but the gap from 2nd to 4th is unbelievably close with only 2 points between Liverpool in 2nd and Man United in 4th.

We have the get the disappointment of the League Cup defeat out of our system and with only 3 league fixtures in March, we should be fresh and hopefully keep ourselves in with a fighting chance of European football next season heading into the last couple of months of the season.

PLAYER OF THE MONTH - Johann Berg Gudmundsson

Difficult month to pick a player of the month considering we only won 1 game out of 5 in February. However, I'm going to give it to Johann Berg Gudmundsson as he not only scored in the League Cup final but popped up with the winner in the away victory against Arsenal.

TOP LEAGUE GOALSCORERS SEASON

ANDRE GRAY - 9
VALDIVIA - 9
ALESSIO CERCI - 6

MONTHLY MANAGERIAL RECORD:

1 Win, 1 Draw, 3 Defeats (20% win rate)​
 
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MARCH 2017 REVIEW:

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A third consecutive league defeat with a 1-0 loss away to Stoke City. Our season is hitting a really low point and we are falling further behind the top 4 and face a real battle to get a place in the Europa League next season.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Ben Mee

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Injuires to two of our Republic of Ireland internationals with Robbie Brady suffering a twisted ankle and Jeff Hendrick pulling his hamstring. Both will miss the rest of the month and our fixtures at home to Swansea City and away to Manchester United.

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Great to get back to winning ways with a comfortable 3-1 victory at home to Swansea City. An early Steven Defour penalty, a Lukasz Fabianski own goal and a second half strike from Alessio Cerci put us 3-0 up and it was a very late consolation for Gylfi Sigurdsson which ruined our clean sheet. All in all, a really positive results after a difficult couple of weeks.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Nicolas Tagliafico

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Disastrous news with Ben Mee ruled out for the rest of the season with a damaged spine. This should keep him out for up to 3 months. Hopefully James Tarkowski can step up in his place for the rest of the season.

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Another injury with Nicolas Tagliafico suffering a broken arm which will keep him out for up to 5 weeks. The injuries are racking up with a number of key players currently out includng Ben Mee, Robbie Brady, Jeff Hendrick, Andre Gray, Nicolas Tagliafico, Joaquin Arzura and Marco Asensio.

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A much changed lineup for us with so many players absent through injuries but no excuses as we suffered our worst defeat of the season. Manchester United dominated and fully deserved to come away with their 5-1 win.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Kasper Dolberg

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Some great news for the club with talisman Andre Gray returned from his torn calf muscle injury which has kept him out for the last 3 months. He has been a big loss to the club and it will be great to get him back involved with the first team once he returns to full fitness.

MONTHLY REVIEW:

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A very short month with only 3 league fixtures. Having started the month with another loss to Stoke City, the response was excellent in picking up the 3 points at home to Swansea City. However, we finished the month with a really poor showing against Manchester United which was a complete contrast to the outstanding performance we put in against them in the League Cup final. We have dropped to our lowest position of the season in the league as we now sit 7th but although disappointing, this is testament to the level of consistency we have shown throughout our first season in the Premier League. I would like to achieve a Europa League place for next season but have to be proud of the teams performance this season.

PLAYER OF THE MONTH - Alessio Cerci

There was no real standout performer in this month but I am going to give it to Alessio Cerci due to his flexibility in the side moving from RW to CF and always putting in consistent performances. He has 7 league goals this season and has been a fantastic addition to the side since signing for a bargain £2 million in the summer.

TOP GOALSCORERS:

Andre Gray - 9
Valdivia - 9
Alessio Cerci - 7

MONTHLY MANAGERIAL RECORD:

1 Win, 2 Defeats (33% win rate)​
 
APRIL 2017 REVIEW:

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Great response to the hammering we took at Old Trafford with a 3-1 win at home to West Brom. Goals from Marco Asensio, Robbie Brady and Andre Gray helped us pick up a valuable 3 points to keep us in the hunt for European football next season.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Jeff Hendrick

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Bad news off the back of the West Brom win with Jon Flanagan picking up strained knee ligaments which will keep him out for up to 6 weeks. He could well miss the rest of the season at this stage with only 6 games to go.

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Back-to-back Premier League home wins with a 4-1 hammering of Hull City. Having fallen behind early on to a Alfred N'Diaye strike, we responded excellently with 2 goals from Alessio Cerci and late strikes from Marco Asensio and the returning Andre Gray giving us an emphatic victory.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Alessio Cerci

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Delighted to have Joaquin Arzura back in full training after 5 months out with a damaged achillles tendon. He had an excellent start to the season as our defensive midfielder after signing from River Plate for £1.9 million. Hopefully he can replicate the form he showed at the end of the season but it could take a number of weeks to get him back involved with the first team.

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A third win on the spin with a 2-0 away win to AFC Bournemouth. We limited Bournemouth throughout the game and snatched 2 goals either side of half time from Andre Gray and Robbie Brady. It's good to see Andre Gray instantly returning to form after his injury and Robbie Brady has been excellent in recent weeks, keeping Valdivia out of the starting lineup.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Matt Lowton

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We closed out the month with a perfect 4 wins from 4 league games in April, with a 2-1 win away to champions Leicester City. Leicester have found it hard defending their title and currently sit in 13th place and we went to the King Power stadium full of confidence. Having gone in at half time with the scores level at 0-0, we scored twice in the opening 20 minutes of the second half through Alessio Cerci and a third successive league strike for Robbie Brady. Riyad Mahrez pulled one back but we held on for another 3 points which keeps put us right in the hunt for Champions League football.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Alessio Cerci

MONTHLY REVIEW:

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A perfect month with 4 wins from 4 league games sees us sit in 6th place and only 2 points behind Liverpool in 4th place. With 3 games to go we are right in the mix for Champions League football, competing with Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool, Man City and Southampton for 2 Champions League places. We have been helped this month with the emphatic return of Andre Gray who scored 2 in his 3 games since returning from long-term injury. Looking at our remaining 3 fixtures, we face Crystal Palace at home, Sunderland away and close the season with a home game against Watford. They are 3 winnable fixtures and hopefully we can do enough to keep the pressure on the sides ahead of us.

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PLAYER OF THE MONTH:

Having won the Young Player of the Month in April, Marco Asensio is the club player of the month for April. Marco has been excellent again this month with 2 goals from our 4 games. His impact at the club since signing on loan in January has been unbelievable and his partnership with Jeff Hendrick in the middle of the park has been excellent.

TOP LEAGUE GOALSCORERS (SEASON):

ANDRE GRAY - 12
ALESSIO CERCI - 10
VALDIVIA - 9
ROBBIE BRADY - 5
JEFF HENDRICK - 4

MONTHLY MANAGERIAL RECORD:

4 Wins, 0 Draws, 0 Defeats (100% win rate)​
 
MAY 2017 REVIEW:

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We badly needed to get a win to start our 3 most important games of the season but we could only manage a 1-1 draw at home to Crystal Palace. Alessio Cerci put us ahead with his 11th league goal of the season but Loic Remy equalised in the second half to disappoint the home fans and leave us rely on other results to keep us in the hunt for Champions League football.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Marco Asensio

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With Liverpool falling to a 2-1 defeat at home to title chasing Manchester United, competition for 4th place is wide open with only 3 points separating Liverpool in 4th and Watford in 8th place. A 5 way battle with 2 games to play between ourselves, Liverpool, Manchester City, Southampton and Watford. Fascinating end to the season in store!

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An emphatic result away to Sunderland as we raced into a 3 goal lead after less than half an hour through goals from Jeff Hendrick, Andre Gray and Alessio Cerci. Gray struck is 14th league goal of the season to make it 4-0 with 25 minutes to play. Although Sunderland pulled 2 goals back through Didier Ndong and Fabio Borini, we held on for an important 3 points.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Andre Gray

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Wth us playing the first game of the weekend on the Friday night, we could watch on and hope for results to go our way over the rest of the weekend and that's exactly what happened. Although Man City beat Southampton 6-2 and Watford picked up a dominant 4-0 win at home to Middlesbrough, Liverpool dropped points again away to West Brom which keeps us in 4th place with a 1 point advantage over Liverpool in 5th. It is still a 5 horse race for 4th spot but we know that a win at home to Watford would ensure Champions League football next season.

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Final game of the season and we needed a win to ensure Champions League football and that's exactly what we achieved. We struggled throughout the game but a Ben Watson own goal on the hour mark was enough for us to scrape over the line for 4th place and a monumental achievement for a newly promoted side to reach such an accomplishment.
MAN OF THE MATCH - Michael Keane

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BURNLEY HAVE MADE THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE! Unbelievable achievement and looking at the sides who will be missing out on the Champions League next season makes the result all the better with Liverpool, Man City and Chelsea all missing out on the Champions League.

MONTHLY REVIEW:

PLAYER OF THE MONTH:

Alessio Cerci had another cracking month with 2 goals in our last season to continue his impressive end to the season. The winger managed 12 league goals in his first season for the club and was an unbelievable bargain at only £2 million from Atletico Madrid.

TOP GOALSCORERS (SEASON):

ANDRE GRAY - 14
ALESSIO CERCI - 12
VALDIVIA - 9
ROBBIE BRADY - 5
JEFF HENDRICK - 5

MONTHLY MANAGERIAL RECORD:

2 Wins, 1 Draw, 0 Defeats (67% win rate)​
 
Very well done.

Im currently doing a burnley save in first season and have had a very similar go at it. 8 games to go and 2 points outside the top 4. Very fun save indeed
 
callamity said:
Very well done.

Im currently doing a burnley save in first season and have had a very similar go at it. 8 games to go and 2 points outside the top 4. Very fun save indeed
Click to expand...

Cheers callamity. Burnley are a great team to manage in the game, bit of a challenge but it's went well better than I thought it would. Hope you get the same end to the season that I did.
 
SEASON 2016/17 REVIEW:

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Looking back on my first season with the club, it's been an excellent season which has monumentally went beyond any expectations I had heading into the season. We were expected to struggle and fight against relegation, so to finish in 4th place and be able to bring the club Champions League football next season is unbelievable. Our FA Cup run was short as we went out to Ipswich but we made the final of the League Cup only to lost out to Manchester United in a remarkable 5-4 defeat.

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PLAYER OF THE SEASON - Andre Gray was voted player of the season with 34% of the votes. Although injured for over 3 months from December to the end of March, Andre managed 14 goals in 22 league appearances. He also added 4 goals in our entertaining run to the League Cup final and there is no doubt that Andre deserves to be player of the year.

YOUNG PLAYER OF THE SEASON & SIGNING OF THE SEASON - Although Alessio Cerci was a bargain at £2 million and scored 12 league goals this season, Valdivia was named signing of the season and it's hard to argue against this. At £4.7 million, Valdivia was a relative cheap addition to the side when he signed last summer from International of Brazil. He was an instant hit with the side and was fantastic throughout the season with 9 league goals and 6 assists from 29 appearances. He also scored 6 goals in the League Cup. Valdivia was also named young player of the season which is a fantastic individual double for the player. At 22 years of age, Valdivia has an exciting future ahead of him.

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Honoured to be award the Premier League Manager of the Year. Also surprised to see that I managed a 55% win rate in the league in my first season with the club.

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In terms of finances, our net spend was ranked 14th at just over £5 million with all clubs in the Premier League spending more than the earned.

The really staggering figure which highlights how over the odds our achievements this season have been is the annual wages for the club as we rank 20th with a wage budget of just over £30 million per year. In comparison, Manchester United are highest with a budget of £171 million per annum (nearly 6 times our budget) and based on the position we finished, the 4th highest budget is Chelsea with £127 million per annum.

Thanks to our league position, TV deal money and our run in the League Cup, our finances have significantly improved as we now have a balance of £65 million. I'm hoping I will have a bit of money to spend to add to my squad for the season ahead where we will embark on our first ever campaign in the Champions League.

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Arsenal were crowned deserving Premier League champions as they led the way for most of the season but narrowly beat Manchester United to the honours with only one point separating the 2 sides. Both sides will be joined by ourselves and Tottenham who finished 3rd in the Champions League next season. Liverpool and Manchester City will be disappointed to finish in the Europa League places. However, the real disappointments are Sunderland, Swansea City and Middlesbrough who were relegated to the Championship. They will be replaced by Championship winners, Newcastle United, runners-up, Huddersfield and playoff winners, Wolves in the Premier League next season.

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Valdivia was named in the Premier League team of the year to further highlight the excellent debut season he had with the club.

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Alexis Sanchez was named Premier League top goalscorer with 22 goals. Although Diego Costa and Callum Wilson also scored 22 goals, Alexis Sanchez played fewer games and won the award on this basis. Looking at the list, only Alexis Sanchez and Sergio Aguero had a better minutes per goal ratio than Andre Gray and if Andre hadn't suffered such a significant injury, I'm sure he would have ranked much higher on the list of top goalscorers.

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Arsenal achieved the double with a 4-1 Wembley victory in the FA Cup final against Liverpool. It was a complete annihilation with Arsenal 4-0 ahead after only 1 hour to put the game well beyond a disappointing Liverpool.

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Premier League runners up, Manchester United, were victorious in the Europa League, narrowly beating Atletico Madrid to claim the trophy. Talisman Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored the winner to ensure that Jose Mourinho's first season at Old Trafford ended with a cup double after the beat us in the League Cup final earlier in the season.

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In the Champions League, Juventus beat Bayern Munich to claim the trophy thanks to a goal from Paulo Dybala. This capped off an excellent treble for the club as they had already wrapped up the Serie A title and the Italian Cup.​
 
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