The Alfa Romeo Metaphor

Enrico Pucci

Enrico Pucci

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My Alfa Romeo is a metaphor for my life. When it's running, it's beautiful and powerful. The purr of the engine and the roar of acceleration are exactly what a car is supposed to sound like. When I bought it, I was living the dream. Serie A players live exciting and stylish lives. I had that for a while. Unfortunately, like my life, my Alfa spends more time broken down as I cannot afford the repair bills to get it running again.

While I was still playing, I'd opened a restaurant. My financial advisor had me heavily invested in housing construction in Spain. I was making money hand over fist. Then the economy collapsed. The big Spanish development in which I was a partner stopped. Literally. It's three-quarters finished and some 2,000 apartments are still sitting there untouched. In the exact state the workers left them in when they walked away. As a result, I was over-leveraged. In other words, I'd borrowed too much at the wrong time. But I was still playing so I figured that I'd be fine. The restaurant went belly up a year later and I blew my knee out weeks after that. 2009 sucked. The doctors and everyone said I could play again, but I knew I couldn't. I was nearly a cripple before the ACL gave out. My knees were really that bad. In 2010, I had to sell my expensive apartment in the old part of Bologna to pay down some of the mounting debt. Then my wife left.

The only thing I had left was the broken down Alpha.

I'm only telling you this because I finally got a job. A real job. With prospects. I'll be able to get the Alpha running again. The nightmare might just be over. I'm looking out the window as the plane begins to descend into Sevilla. Beautiful, beautiful Sevilla. This is the second time I've flown into Spain this week. The second time into Sevilla, even. This time it's to sign the papers and become a manager.

As you can probably guess, the first time was to interview. They showed me around the stadium and the training facilities. They were all very nice. Top notch to be honest. Apparently, I impressed them.

But I'm not going to be the manager of Sevilla or Betis. No. Not me. I'm an American with Italian roots. Seriously, would either of those illustrious teams appoint an Italian (I hold dual citizenship) as boss? Let alone an American? Especially one with no international caps and no managerial experience. Well, aside from two seasons coaching the youth team for Bologna I've got no experience. I wasn't even the youth team manager, mind you, just a coach. My old club were kind enough to give me a job. It kept the vultures at bay. But barely.

I'm going to become the manager of Cadiz. Cadiz Club de Futbol S.A.D.

Cadiz is south of Seville on the coast. It's a major port. As a city, Cadiz is pretty cool. Completely surrounded by water. Everyone lives in a third of the actual city area. And it's packed like any large metropolitan city. The shipping yards and warehouses take up the rest of the waterfront. Oh, but the waterfront. It's got a heck of a beach. It's never cold. Not like northern Italy gets. It will be a lovely place to get my feet wet in management.

Like me, the club is in rather desperate straits. They've been very open about their problems. They've got a mountain of debt and nowhere near enough income. If I bring in any players, they'll be for free or on loan. I've got a limited player salary budget and we're pretty close to it. I will be able to bring in my own staff. I'm hoping some of my old friends will want to join me in the beautiful Spanish sunshine. They are hoping I can get the team promoted. The expectation is that I get the team into the play-offs. The Secundo is brutal. The top four teams make the playoffs. The winners of the first round play-off for the chance to move to the next phase. There are four Secundo leagues. The winners from each group play-off are then paired up. The winners of the two-legged tilts get promoted. The losers then play two legs and the winner of that goes up. That's six or potentially eight high-stress matches at the end of a grueling season.

The plane is at the gate now. Here I go to sign my life (or what's left of it I can borrow against) away...
 
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“Flavio, Flavio, Flavio!” I yelled as I walked into his repair shop back in Bologna. “My luck has finally changed.”

A dirty face topped with a dirty ball cap peeked from around a corner at the back.

“What? you finally picked the Lotto?”

“Not even, but fate has finally decided to stop giving it to me [expletives deleted],” I replied. “I got a job as a manager. I'm moving to Spain. Cadiz. I need to drive the Alfa down there day after tomorrow.”

“And you want me to forget what you owe and fix your car so you can look good?”

“Just the look good part,” I replied. “I will pay the bill. I can now. I’m employed. I mean not in these next few days, but they’ll eventually have to pay me. Regularly, even.”

He smeared the grease, grime and dirt around his chin in thought. But I knew he’d agree. He sighed.

“I’ll have it ready in the morning,” he said. “You better go, I’ve got a lot to do to get that thing running again.”

I looked at my watch. It would be morning in Washington, DC. My Mom should know the good news. She needed to know that the light at the end of the tunnel might not be a train after all.
 
Beautiful, sunny Cadiz

"Paco, it's me, Enrico," I said.

"How are you my friend."

"Good. Good. I need your help."

"Really! You didn't ... no ... but ... really? Who hired you?" Paco Leal stammered. Paco was the Keeper for Merida when Bologna sent me to Spain on loan. He was nearing the end of his career. Bologna figured that since I also spoke Spanish that playing in Liga Adelante would be a good learning experience. I lived with him. He taught me how to be a professional. He's also the first of my friends I had to call.

"Cadiz! Just down the road."

"No. I mean, yes. I'm so happy for you. Cadiz? That's fantastic. Cadiz."

"I've just started driving The Alfa down. You're my first call. I told you you would be. Man of my word. I need an Assistant Manager. It would be perfect for you. You could even keep the villa. It wouldn't be that long of a drive every day."

"Well, it would," he replied. "But by Mary it wouldn't be so bad. I've just been laying around since I left Sevilla. Tending my garden, reading, watching television."

"I know. It'll be great. We can build something fantastic. You're in?"

Silence.

"Yes, Enrico, I'm in. Drive safe. Let's talk in a few days once you've gotten settled."

"Ciao."

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They'd put me into a nice, small hotel in a quiet back street not that far from the stadium. Honestly, nothing is that far from anything else here in Cadiz. He'd given me the name of a real estate broker who could help me find a permanent place to live. I could only live in a hotel for so long.

I had a list of addresses in the city to look at. I'd stroll around each neighborhood to get the feel for it before my appointment to look at the actual apartment. I notice my reflection in a shop window. My suit is nicely ironed and looks sharp. My shoes are shined. I know I’m a decade out of date and nobody in Milan dresses like this anymore, but I’m in Cadiz and I hope they won’t know. The breeze jostles my mop of ungainly hair. I’ve come to accept that it’s hopeless to try and do anything with it. My nose is the most prominent feature on my face. It was once aquiline, but has been broken three times and now makes several turns as it meanders down my face. While my stubble looked stylish when I climbed out of my Alfa Romeo six years ago, the morning light is not so complimentary.

Several storefronts down the block is a barber. I decide that maybe the barber can only improve things.

"Good morning,” one of the barbers says as I enter. There are two barbers and three other guys in the shop. One is getting shaved. “What can i do for you this morning.”

“I just decided I had better get a shave,” I reply sitting in the open chair.

"You are a wise man," the barber said. "Keep the bit below the lip?"

"Yes, please," I replied. I'd had the soul patch for a number of years and rather liked it.

"Are you new to Cadiz? Visiting?" he asked.

"No, just took a job."

"You are a businessman? Who is hiring in Cadiz?”

They all laugh.

“No, I’m a footballer,” I reply. I don’t know why, but I decide to lay it all on the table. “I’m your new manager. I just signed on to manage Cadiz.”

"No ..." he stops lathering me up. He looks at me closer. They all do. "Okay ... yes. Come to rescue us."

"You're the Italian, yes?" the man in the other chair asks.

"I've got dual citizenship," I replied. "I'm also American. Born in the United States."

They all nod and agree.

"Where did you play, Italy, right?" my barber asks. "Which team?"

"Bologna," I reply.

They all nod and agree.

"Your Spanish is good but sounds funny," my barber says.

"I know, I learned it mostly from Mexicans playing soccer, but there's also probably some Ecuadorians. I worked with a bunch of them in restaurants when I was a teen. I did spend a season in Merida."

"Ahh, Merida," they all say.

My barber stares at me for a moment.

“Your mop,” my barber exclaims, gesturing at my hair. "It's ... it's ..." his voice trails off. "It's got to go."

"What do you propose?"

"All gone. Shave it off. You're thinning a bit in the back," he tapped the crown of my head. "You'll never have to worry about hiding any bald spots that develop."

I shivered at the thought of hiding my bald spot by gluing down long strands from distant parts of my head.

"Do it."

Here's quick pic I took on my cell before he finished shaving the bottom half.

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Great Story mate, there's some creativity in here! Suerte!


(Although it's funny I started managing Cadiz just yesterday...;))
 
Meet the New Boss

For anyone who works in an office, you can relate to my experience of meeting everyone at the Cadiz CF S.A.D training ground. I shook many peoples hands. I smiled and nodded. A lot. From the guy at the car park gate to the chef to the groundskeeper to the receptionist. I only remember a few people's name. I'll remember the rest over time.

The training ground is on the mainland in San Fernando. It's called Cuidad Deportivo Bahia Sur. Obviously, real estate in Cadiz is so high that they had to have their training facilities elsewhere. What's funny is that it's right next to a mall. If players get the urge for junk food, they could walk over to the Burger King or some bad Chinese. There are things I don't miss about America. One of them is Burger King.

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Margarita schedules everything. From the pre-season (we filled that out in my first afternoon) to the physicals all players undergo on their first day back. She's really the glue or grease that keeps everything functioning. She is memorable for her machine gun laugh. She's short and loud. Her laugh periodically rips through the offices as she bounds through it. She never seems to stop moving.

"You need anything, talk to me," Margarita stated. "You need to know anything about anybody in the office, ask me. You need anything in Cadiz, I know how to get it."

Herculio is the chef. Everyone calls him "Herc." I love Spanish food. I developed a taste for it during my season at Merida. The smells wafting out of the cafeteria are always sublime. I could gain weight working here if I'm not careful.

Federico is the IT guy. He runs the website and maintains anything technological in the office. Everyone calls him "Efi." He gave me my iPad and installed some apps on my iPhone. He also programmed in everyone's number into my phone.

I was not impressed with the physios. Their room was a mess and they looked like a sullen bunch. I have carte blanche to let anyone go I don't want around. They're gone.

Most of the previous staff had left when the former manager took his new job. I've got a load of positions to fill. I get to hire six first team positions. This includes a fitness coach and a decent physio. Paco and I are going to have to decide what to do about the youth team setup. There are currently three guys running it, but I'm not sure they're all that good. The youth facilities here are really nice. So far I'm not impressed with the youth coaches. I can hire up to six guys for the youth setup.

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It looks like the Chief Scout, the one and only scout, has spent far too much time sitting in the cafeteria. We'll see in the coming days how much he knows about the free and loan players we could get. Paco and I are going to have to wade through a ton of interviews to get all the positions filled.

Paco starts in a few days once he's signed his papers.
 
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pn91 said:
Great Story mate, there's some creativity in here! Suerte!

(Although it's funny I started managing Cadiz just yesterday...;))
Click to expand...

Thanks!
Yeah, Cadiz are going to be quite a challenge. Not only do I have to get used to the quirks of FM14 (I've been playing FM12 since it's release date), Cadiz budget is horrid and I'm reduced to signing free or loaner players. It's the dang stadium renovations that are the problem.
 
The sad state of Cadiz CF S.A.D.

Now that I've sat down and really examined things, I've got to say that I'm going to have an interesting season. There is literally no money for new players.

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I'm not complaining. Well, maybe a little. More whining than anything else. I came into this job knowing I had no money to spend.

Chairman Manzano and the Board had decided to renovate the Ramon de Carranza. Construction is done. The new stadium is a gorgeous glass-clad structure. There is ample parking underneath. It now seats 25,000. It's a fabulous modern ground compared to the old one.

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What I'm having to deal with is the fall-out from the rebuild. Cadiz still owes EU12.5 million. Monthly payments are EU542,000 per month. I'm no banker, but they somehow negotiated this as a no interest loan. Cadiz CF will be free and clear for the start of 2015 season.

El Submarino Amarillo are going to need some luck to resurface out of Secundo B4 and back into Lega Adelante.

But Paco is here and he's calling through a list of names he's come up with. We should interviewing some coach candidates over the next several days.
 
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Interviews

Paco and I have interviewed twenty five or so candidates. Honestly, I've lost count. We didn't interview anyone for Physio or for our fitness guy. Paco insisted on two guys. They were available and willing and they'll sign tomorrow. Zosimo San Roman will be in charge of fitness and Michel Roman will be our Physio.

Here's our top candidates to whom we'll be offering contracts:

Javi Garcia (no not the one who is still playing for Manchester City) will coach tactics. He played for Recreativo and Granada, but retired when Los Granadinos joined La Liga.
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Paco Llorente (he'll go by Llorente not Paco, can't have two Pacos) will be in charge of attacking. The former Real and Compostela player will be the only one amongst us with any international experience. We joked quite a bit about the one cap he got against Albania and the goal he scored.
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Alejo Indias will run the defense. He played for Figeures, Celta and Elche.
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Juan Vincente Peinado will be in charge of technical skills and ball control.
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Knock on wood but hopefully, Director of Football Alessandro Gaucci won't have any trouble negotiating their contracts. I pray to God this is all settled in a few days. I have learned I hate interviewing.
 
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In which I give the motivational speech that bombs

I'm a bundle of nerves. Today the players arrive. The first team coaching staff is all set. Gaucci got them all signed. Furthermore, we hired a completely new coaching staff for the youths out of the remaining guys we'd interviewed.

The players all did the baseline physical testing in the morning. We do this to establish overall health parameters and in case of any concussions. The idea is that we'll know if an injured player is back to full health or if a player needs a match off so that we don't dead legs in May when we hope to be in the play-off hunt.

I have to say we're pretty slow-footed in defense and midfield. Then again, we're relying on some aging veterans to have one (or two) more productive seasons. Thankfully, we have some reasonable quick wingers and forwards.

The other thing I notice is that we're short. And by that I mean not tall. We won't be scoring many goals from crosses or corners. No lobbing the ball into the box for Cadiz this season. I'll have to address this with a few free and/or loan signings.

We all have lunch together in the cafeteria and then it's time for my big speech. I stand up and only need to wait a couple of seconds for the room to quite down.

"For most of you, I'd like to welcome you to Cadiz. There are only five of you left from last year so it's very much a clean slate from which we begin. I'm really excited to be here. So are Paco, my Assistant Manager as well as Javi, Llorente, Alejo and JVP. You've already met Zo and Michel."

"Cadiz are a big name in Spanish Football. We're going to be going for promotion this year. Our goal is to win Secundo B4 to qualify for the promotion play-offs. Everyone in Spain knows El Submarino Amarillo and we will make the fans proud of us again."

"I played in Serie A for Bologna as a fullback. I know what it takes play at the top level. I want to see that kind of commitment from you. Have fun, train hard and we'll see the results on the pitch and in the win column."

"I'm not much of a speech guy. Any comments or questions?"

There was a murmur of agreement from some of the veterans.

Abdoullaye Fall, a midfielder who'd been here last season shook his head and looked at the floor.

"Yes, Abdoullaye?" I queried.

"There are teams, good teams in the B4," he said in passable Spanish with a distinct French accent. "Settled teams without comings and goings like here at Cadiz. I think we don't know if we can aim so high. I'm not saying we can't make run, but I think mid-table is more realistic."

That was not the reaction I was hoping for.

"Thanks, Abdoullaye," I replied. "But if we all give 100% in training, give 100% in matches, we can do this. Many of you are experienced pros. You've been on some **** teams. You've been on some that came together and went on runs. You know what it takes. I expect you to show everyone else what we need to do every day to pull this off."

There were louder murmurs of approval. Fall resumed looking at the floor. I'm not so sure that me talking went over all that well. It'll all be better once I get them on the training pitch.

"Optional shooting practice with JVP otherwise, I'll see you in the morning."

The players shuffled out. The staff and I stood around looking at each other.

"Fall better be good or I want him gone," I said addressing Alessandro Gaucci, the Director of Football.
 
Training finally begins

Not only are the central defenders slow, they're short and soft. This is not a good combination. As I watch them train, they never try to impress me with a thunderous tackle or anything resembling physical play. What are we going to do against a large center forward stampeding around our penalty box? I know the answer and I don't like it.

Jose Maria Belforti is the best of the three. But he's only 5'11" and not that great of a jumper. While he's a pretty decent tackler when it's necessary. I'm wondering when he'll find it necessary.
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Fran Perez looks the part of a big, tall and rugged Spanish central defender. Except for he's a bit useless. Okay, I'm exaggerating. He has not inspired any confidence in me whatsoever.
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Josete is solid and unspectacular. He'll tackle, he'll play physical. He's the shortest of the three.
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The fullbacks are all good crossers of the ball. We'll have a solid attack from the back, that's for sure. Defending might be a wee bit iffy. But isn't that always a coaches worry?

I spoke with midfielder Mikel Martins about transforming himself into a defender. He's not tall at 5'10", but he's a really smart player. It's obvious when he plays that he's brave, tough and understands when to play rough. He said he'd be willing to try.
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It looks like a basic 442 might be the best formation for this bunch. I've got a bunch of options for wingers. Martins, Josete and Mehdi Nafti will make great defensive midfielders. Our success this season likely hangs around the neck of Jorge Luque.

Jorge is already pulling the strings in five aside games. His creativity and passing shine. He's one of the few hold-overs having transferred in last January.
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While several of the wingers can play up front, I've only got two out-and-out strikers. Airam and Aymen Souda will have to stay healthy for us to do the business and make the playoffs. Did I mention we're a short team?
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I must sign a central defender and a muscular forward.
 
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Very nice start mate, looks like it could be really interesting - I'll be checking back to see how you do!
 
Loan signings to pull it all together

I pulled my chair around Alessandro's desk so we could look over a few loan signing possibilities. First and foremost, we'd look through Udinese's and Fluminense's reservers and youth ranks. We are affiliated with them and it's more than likely they'd agree to a loan arrangement in which we'd be charged no fees and they'd pick up the player's salary.

Cuz we're broke.

Michael Vinicus Silva de Moraes, aka Michael, looked promising. He's 6'1", fast, good dribbler, good header and good finisher. This kid will be playing starring in La Liga some day. We'll gladly acclimatize him to Spain.
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Bruno Farias Araujo, aka Bruninho, looks like a promising midfielder. And if he likes it here, maybe he'll sign for next season; his contract expires next June.
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Looking through Udinese's ranks, Ricardo Chara looks promising. He's Colombian so the language won't be an issue. He's tall and a good header. Colombian defenders I've run into over the years have been pretty tough characters, so I'm hoping Ricardo will fit that mold.
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I leave Alessandro to work the phone and get these boys wearing Amarillo.
 
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Sundry details

I imagined that managing a football club would be more time consuming. But here at Cadiz CF, there's no wheeling and dealing in the transfer market. At least not this year. I've got twenty two players on contract, but several are useless and the Football Director is trying to offload them.

I told Alessandro to get rid of Abdoullaye Fall, Fran Perez (the useless, tall defender) and a guy who goes by Gato. He's a slow, untalented winger. I just don't need them hanging around and not playing. Fall turned out to be mediocre and with the initial impression he'd made with me, he was never going to get on my good side.

I did have some other items I needed to take care of. I talked to Margarita about finding a yoga instructor.

"You want to start taking the Yoga?" she asked.

"Yes," I lied. It wasn't for me. But I didn't feel like explaining myself. I wanted the players doing yoga to increase their flexibility and guard against injuries. It's the latest trend that all the big teams are doing. I figure, why not at Cadiz?

A half hour later, she had the names to two instructors and their class schedules.

One was that evening so I dropped in. It was a little, nondescript storefront. I walked into the entryway and was confronted with a tie-dyed sheet separating the entry from the back. I peered around the sheet and a bunch of woman and a few guys were lining up their mats, loosening up or chatting. A bunch of people were huddled in the back filling out some paperwork or something. I took off my shoes and socks and walked toward the back trying to identify whomever was in charge through the gloom.

"Hi, I'm Elise," a thirty-something woman in tights and a tshirt said, thrusting a hand out. "You must be new?"

"I am," I replied. "You take drop-ins, yes?"

"Of course," she replied. "Grab a mat, I'll get you the paperwork to fill out."

I'd dropped in on a beginner class. Which would be exactly what I'd need for my players. I wanted to see what each of these teachers would be like. Would Elise be able to handle an unruly bunch like my team? I have my doubts. Is she a good yoga instructor. For sure.

The class was near my hotel, so afterward I strolled back to shower. Afterwards, I went over to the neighborhood where I'd gotten my shave. You'll recall that I'd looked at an apartment nearby. I'd looked at several, but was down to deciding between the apartment and renting a small house just outside of Puerto Real on the mainland. The house would be more expensive and had a suburban feel to it so I wanted to find out if the apartment would be quiet enough.

After a bite to eat at a restaurant in the neighborhood, I wandered around for a bit. There were plenty of restaurants, bodegas and bars, but this wasn't the posh part of Cadiz. It was quiet enough for me. Plus, I liked having the restaurants nearby. I'm not really much of a cook.

The apartment is on the bayside of Cadiz. Here's some pictures I took on my first visit. The first is looking northward along the Avenue de Bahia which runs along the bay. The first is looking toward the older, touristy part of town. The second is looking the other direction. Those tall blue apartment towers look pretty stylish, pretty awesome, eh?
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Yeah, I won't be living in them. I'm going to get the apartment a block off of Avenue de Bahia. That boring little tan and brown thing is the one I'll be living in. I'll be on the third floor looking toward the bay at least. I've still got a mountain of debt to pay down.
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Here's a handy map to help you all out.
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Now that I've decided on the apartment, I'm going to have to have what's left of my worldly possessions shipped here.
 
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Friendlies

We warmed up against a local side after a week's worth of work centered around improving our fitness. The players only played 45 minutes each. Bruninho agreed to our loan deal.

The Alpha developed a creak taking left turns. I'm not sure what that signifies. It runs fine otherwise so I'm not worried.

Next up on 1 August was Anderlecht. They should really beat us. They compete in Europe nearly every year. They win the Belgian league often. We're lowly Cadiz. Almost 4700 turned out to see the new look Los Submarino Amarillos. I was hoping for a sweltering August evening so that Anderlecht would wilt, but it was balmy and breezy.

Luque curled in a free kick and smashed home a rebound all inside the first thirty minutes. Then Anderlecht got serious and started playing. We coped fairly well until their left midfielder walzed past my right back Albert Dalmau and whipped in a cross to the near post. Josete was with their striker Fede Vico, but he lunged for the cross and poked it past my keeper Alejandro.

This is just preseason so it's not like I'm worried. Okay, not exactly worried. I'm am a tinch worried about my fullbacks shutting down the wing play. Sadly, Dalmau is my best fullback.

I swapped everyone out at halftime. We clung to the lead, but Anderlecht inevitably scored. My second string valiantly plugged breach after breach. One of their central defenders had come forward to join the attack. My backup keeper Angel Bernabe almost smothered the first shot, but the defender stretched out a toe and nudged it past him and into the net.

We'd agreed to penalties after ninety minutes if tied. Bernable stopped two pretty tame efforts and we won the penalties.

On 4 August, Michael agreed to terms and became our second loan signing. He starred as we smashed nine past a local side.

The Alfa started hiccuping sometimes when I start it. But since the creaking hasn't gotten worse and occasionally goes away, I'm not in the least worried.

On 9 August, Chara agreed to terms and the team is complete. On the 10th I packed him and everyone else on the yellow bus and drove to Oviedo. It's on the Atlantic due north of Cadiz. This was one of the friendlies that had been scheduled last spring. What the **** were they thinking? We're not Seville. We don't have a jet to fly us around the world. This was a 10 hour bus ride. It would have been longer if Herc hadn't loaded up several coolers with drinks and packed a bunch of food. Herc is definitely pulling his weight.

On the 11th we played Oviedo. We started out well. Kike Marquez, our first choice right winger won a free kick 5m from the corner. Perico, my left sided first choice winger, whipped a ball to the back post. My utility man Villar (playing striker) got free of his marker and slammed a shot into a defender. The ball fell to Luque who shanked his swing at the ball. It dribbled goalwards. Bruninho had been marking their keeper. He stepped over and smashed the ball nearly through the back of the Oviedo net.

Oviedo took the ball straight down the field from the restart and scored.

"Paco?" I asked. "Is this going to be a basketball game?"

He grunted. But that was it for the scoring. Unfortunately, Bruninho broke two ribs. I swear I saw the Oviedo player throw an elbow. Not surprisingly, the ref wouldn't listen. Bruninho will be out for maybe two months.

The excitement was to come later. We went sixteen rounds of penalties before Gato missed. Poor hapless Gato.

The Alfa wouldn't start when we got back to the training ground after a 10 hour bus ride. Paco jump started it and it turns out I left a dome light on. That's how it goes.

We played three other friendlies. We beat fellow B4 team Algericas, traveled down to Morocco to play a lower league team Racing Club Casablanca (won 1-2) and struggled against local semi-pro team. We beat them 3-2. I lost count of how many shots skied over the crossbar. I think he hit the post four or five time. But it was the joke goals that got my blood boiling. As in joke defending. I was pretty angry about that and told the players in no uncertain terms that we'd better play with more commitment and concentration next week when the league starts.

We're starting the season with Bruninho out a while with his ribs. My first choice left back Tomas twisted his ankle in Casablanca will miss a month.

But Michael looks ready to tear up the Secundo. The midfield, marshalled by Luque, are moving the ball nicely. I'm nervous about the defense. We'll see how that works out.

I find a mechanic next to the mall that's next to the training ground. He can't identify why there's a creaking sound when I turn left and fixes the hiccups when it starts.
 
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dariodecadiz.es Deportes
New season, new hope for Los Submarino Amarillo

Bogdan Laba

Cadiz CF S.A.D. kick off their season in Secundo B4 tomorrow visiting Atletico Sanluqueno. The match starts at noon.

New manager Enrico Pucci replaced Raul Agne who left for Huesca. Only five players remain from last season's mid-table finish.

Chairman Florentino Manzano wants promotion and brought in the Italian to right the ship and bring a promotion charge.

Holdovers Jorge Luque and Juan Villar will lead the charge. Luque, the midfield maestro, will pull the strings just like he did last season after joining in January. Villar will lead the attack.

Two Brazilians joined on loan from partner club Fluminense; a forward and a midfielder. Michael is a forward. Pucci sees him as a complete forward.

"He's fast, a good dribbler and strong in the air," Pucci said. "He could play in La Liga some day he's that good."

The other Brazilian is Bruninho. "He's a ball-winning midfielder," said Pucci.

Another newcomer puts on the gloves for the first time for Cadiz tomorrow: Alejandro. He spent last season as the back up goalkeeper for Recreativo.

Colombian Ricardo Chara joins on loan from sister club Udinese. He's a defender.

Perico and Kike Marquez, also both new signings, will whip in the crosses for Michael.

Cadiz's home opener is next weekend against Sevilla Atletico.

"Our goal this season is to qualify for the promotion play-offs," Pucci said.
 
"Did you see Laba's article, yet?" asked Javi Garcia as we sat down in the cafeteria around a table. We usually gathered before the players arrived to talk through things.

Paco grunted.

"Not bad," Llorente replied.

"I haven't seen it, yet," I replied. "What's he saying about us?"

"Nothing really," said Alejo opening up the sports section of the dead tree edition. "Promotion charge. New manager. All new players. Michael could play in La Liga some day."

"Don't want to put any pressure on the boy," snickered JVP (Juan Vincente Peinado).

"He'll be fine," I assure everyone. "He's a hard-working kid."

"We still haven't decided who's going to be Captain," Paco injected.

Silence.

Javi slurped his coffee.

"Mikel Martins," JVP suggested.

"Or Mehdi Nafti," Llorente added.

"We've all seen them on the field and in training," Paco said. "They're both veterans. They know what it's all about."

"Both of them would be fine," I said. "I'll pull them aside during training today. See what they have to say."

"Nothing from Alessandro about off-loading Gato, Fall or Perez?" Javi asked.

I shook my head and sighed.

"Any signs Fall's attitude is infectious?" I queried. "I'll ship him to Cadiz B if you think he's causing any problems."

"I think he's learned his lesson after that outburst," JVP said. "He's kept his head down and worked."

The rest nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I know," I replied. "Ruined my Big Speech and I'll never forgive him. I get it. I'll get over it. Some day. What else?"

"Remind the players that the bus leaves at nine," Alejo said. "That's nine in the morning. Sharp."

Atletico Sanluqueno play in Sanlucar de Barrameda which is about an hour up the coast from us.

"I talked to Michel about Tomas and Bruninho," Paco said. "Nothing really to report. Tomas is still two weeks away from being fit; his ankle's still tender. Bruninho is still healing. He says three weeks."

"Where's Zo?" I ask.

"He called me," Paco replied. "Sick kid. He's running late. He should be here soon, though."
 
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