The Dutch Dream a FC Groningen Story

nice first season!!!!

interesting to see how well you do in the Conference League thingy lol
 
nice first season!!!!

interesting to see how well you do in the Conference League thingy lol
We only made it to the quarter finals where we lost to eventual winners Ac Milan
 
November

Ajax v FC Groningen

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Sadly we're not able to take advantage of Ajax not having a decent Keeper and now make it 8 games against Ajax without a win.

Vitesse v FC Groningen

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Another boring draw. This isn't like us not being able to score goals.

Champions League
Atletico Madrid v FC Groningen


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It was a good performance from us as its a bit gutting that it was an own goal that stopped us from getting a point and the cash to go along with it.

FC Groningen v Dordrecht

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Well we were due a performance after the last few games and the new boys came to town and they got an absolute battering but it was good to see all our young players getting the goals.

Champions League
FC Groningen v Red Bull Salzburg


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We carry on the goal scoring form and this win was needed to make sure we have a chance going into the final game and now all we need to do is match their result and we'll finish 3rd.

AZ v FC Groningen

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We got off to a quick start with Arezo scoring the fastest goal in the club's history in just 17 seconds and I thought we were onto another big result but sadly it was the only goal of the game.

Champions League
FC Groningen v Napoli


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What a result against Napoli but it was one of the strangest goals I've seen in my save but who cares as it means we finish in second and in Europe after Christmas.

The goal that got us to the Champions League knockout rounds


League

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Well we've finally got a 3 point lead over Ajax and can we keep this up?

Champions League

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Well the group wasn't expected to be easy and we somehow finish 2nd and will now face Liverpool in the next round.

January

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Another busy month ahead but I'm thinking of now putting Slor into the starting line up to get him ready to take over from Padt as I may look to sell him in the summer if I can get a decent fee for him.

Youth Preview

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Well its apparently a Golden Generation but we won't count our chickens yet until March rolls around.​
 
January

Transfers

Over the course of the month we had no major outgoings but we did sign one new player who hasn't been mentioned yet. We needed an extra player in central midfield so we signed Alexander Gonzalez from Boca Juniors for £10 million which is £2.5 million upfront and then the rest over 3 years which is the sort of deal I wanted to stop doing but we really needed the player in thanks to injuries.

The day I have dreading has also come with Arezo and Hlozek seeing their futures away from the club. Luckily they both have contracts until 2026 so have agreed that they will only leave if the releases clauses are met meaning I can bring in players of the same quality if not better.

FC Groningen v Feyenoord

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2 months without a competitive game and we get a tough one but a point was good here as we were lucky not to get beaten.

FC Groningen v FC Volendam

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Gonzalez makes his debut for the club and what a debut it was as he made a scoring start for the club.

FC Groningen v sc Heerenveen

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A game against our biggest rivals is always tough but Arezo always has that extra quality to get the winning goal and he showed that quality again here.

Toto KNVB Beker Second Round
Feyenoord v
FC Groningen


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A much better game against Feyenoord than at the start of the month as we showed the extra quality here and we progress in the club.

FC Groningen v Willem II

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Its always great to see our youth products coming through and getting game time never mind getting on the score sheet.

Toto KNVB Beker Third Round
Fortuna Sittard v FC Groningen


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We struggled in this game but again its our want away striker who keeps us in the competition as we progress to the quarter finals.

Heracles v FC Groningen

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A disappointing result here but the one bonus was seeing Lopez make a goal scoring debut for the club.

FC Groningen v Ajax

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Well its finally happened. Its only taken 9 games but we've finally recorded a win over Ajax. The fact it was somebody who isn't a regular in the team getting the goals once we were down to 10 men but it shows how far we've come over the 3 seasons.

Feyenoord v FC Groningen

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Our third game against Feyenoord this month and we get another good win to cap off an excellent month. We are really going to miss Hlozek and Arezo.

League

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Well its looking more and more likely that the league is ours as we have a nice lead over Ajax now.

February

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We have our first game against Liverpool here and that will be the game that we work towards all month.​
 
Well done! Who you thinking of to replace Hlozek and Arezo?
 
Well done! Who you thinking of to replace Hlozek and Arezo?
Not too sire down the left but might try and bring in a young striker and let Postema lead the line or currently Donyell Malen is currently transfer listed by psv so might try and get him but that also means Arezo would need to be sold for his release clause of £46 million
 
February

sc Cambuur v FC Groningen

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Lopez is showing how well he's settled in at the club as he gets another goal. These are the games which are our bread and butter so we need to keep the wins going.

FC Groningen v NAC

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Arezo again showing he can turn it up a notch at the death of a game. He'll be a big miss when he finally leaves.

Willem II v FC Groningen

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Our dynamic duo just link up so well in the box and this is going to be a big loss to the club next season and even more difficult to replicate.

FC Groningen v AZ

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We just couldn't cope here today against AZ as we record our first loss in the league this season and it was a hard one to take as we had 2 goals chopped off for offside.

FC Volendam v FC Groningen

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It was good to bounce back with a win straight away and I have made the decision from this point forward Slor will be out No. 1 and we will try and move Padt out of the club in the summer due to his age.


Champions League
FC Groningen v Liverpool


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What a result. I've got to admit though I got the game tacitly wrong at the start and that was evident when we went 2-0 down in the opening 5 minutes. Even after the 3rd goal I was thinking this could go to double figures but after a reshuffle of tactics we played the game of our lives. I reckon it will take a large miracle though to beat Liverpool away from home in the next leg though.

FC Groningen v FC Twente

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We had to rotate the squad here quite a bit due to fitness levels after the Liverpool game and we managed to knick the point in a tight fought game.

League

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We take a 6 point lead into final 10 games of the season. Its going to be close with Ajax right up until the end

March

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A much shorter month for a change as we have the all important 2nd leg against Liverpool. Its going to be made all the more difficult with the game against PSV right before it.​
 
March

Toto KNVB Beker Semi Final
FC Groningen v Heracles


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Hlozek gets a perfect hat-trick in just 9 minutes which is the quickest I've seen and it puts us in the final of the cup for the first time.

FC Groningen v sc Heerenveen

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Out young team are starting to come of age as they get a great win over our rivals.

PSV v FC Groningen

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PSV are a team that are struggling a bit at the moment along with their manager moving on then we were able to take full advantage and secure a good win.

Champions League
Liverpool v FC Groningen


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Well I wasn't expecting to be 2-0 down in 3 minutes I knew this wasn't going to be day but we put up a good fight in the second half and manage to limit the damage but the gulf in class was shown here.

FC Groningen v Ado Den Haag

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Well we needed a quick result here and the boys delivered a big win. With the league nearly wrapped up we've been giving some other players a run out and they are certainly showing what they can do.

League

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With a 10 point lead and a game in hand then the league is surely ours.

The Youth Intake

We were promised a golden generation and it didn't live up to our expectations as we have one stand out player

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The young striker looks promising and with his personality then there is no reason that he won't be able to reach the very top.

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The Run In

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We will hopefully seal the title with plenty of games to go so we can enjoy the final few games. We also have our first cup final to look forward to as well.​
 
The Final Run In

Dordrecht v FC Groningen


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We beat them 8-0 earlier in the season so we knew it was going to be an easy game and we delivered another big win for the fans. Its also good seeing Tesic and Lopez making huge strides on the pitch since they joined as well.

FC Groningen v Vitesse

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A scrappy win but its the 3 points that matter as we move ever closer to sealing the title.

FC Utrecht v FC Groningen

A win here would of sealed our fate as champions but sadly we must wait for the next game as we put in a poor performance.

Toto KNVB Beker Final
FC Groningen v Ajax


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For F*** sake we always get so close to getting a result against Ajax and then our heads go in the final minutes and we through it away. Ajax are still putting the fear through us as we have just recorded 1 win and 2 draws against them so far with the rest loses.

FC Groningen v Fortuna Sittard

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Another poor result in the league as we failed to recover from the disappointing loss in the league. The only positive thing was that results went our way elsewhere and we won the clubs first ever league title.

Willem II v FC Groningen

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We then go out and play like champions to show our fans what we can do and we score 2 excellent goals from midfield to win the game.

Sparta Rotterdam v FC Groningen

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I was worried that conceding on the stroke of half time we were going to get a draw here if not lose but it was a different team that came out for the 2nd half and they blew Sparta out of the water here with our youngsters getting the goals.

FC Groningen v Heracles

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A special way to end the season with a win in-front of our own fans and Lopez is already showing how important he's going to be going forward for us in the AMC role as he gets yet another goal.

League

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Well in the end it looks like we walked away with the league but once it was over Ajax just seemed to throw the towel in and the rest is history.

Budget


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I was hoping for a bit more money but I guess this is because how I've done business in the past on some transfers but we'll make do and look for some big players.

New Stadium

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This was the biggest surprise at the end of the season as I wasn't really expecting it at all. This will be massive for the club as we currently rent our stadium and only have a capacity of 22,579 so any increase on that will be huge along with expansion possibilities as well. From the club info page it looks like they are looking to build a stadium with a capacity of 31,473 so a nice step up for the club.

Transfers News


Well its finally happened Adam Hlozek has finally had his clause met and will be joining PSG at the end of the season for £27.5 million. We've made a nice profit on him as he originally joined for £5 million. We get 100% of the transfer fee so it has been reinvested in the squad but those transfers will come in the next update.


Bring on season 4!!!!!
 
Nice one on the title win mate! To achieve that in just 3 seasons is an awesome result!
 
Nice one on the title win mate! To achieve that in just 3 seasons is an awesome result!
It really helps when the other clubs are selling big players and not replacing them. My hope is that I'll be able to bring them back to Holland in a year or two when they get transfer listed
 
Season 4

Transfers


So we had obviously let Hlozek leave to join PSG but the other big outgoing was Sergio Padt to West Ham for £5.75 million. His contract was up at the end of this coming season so we decided to cash in on him and let Slor step up and become the first team keeper.

So first things first before the transfer window opened we renewed the loan deals of Ludovit Reis from Barcelona who's contract actually will expire at the end of the season and we will do our best to bring him back to the club permanently. We also kept Ki-Jana Hoever on loan from Wolves for another season.

After letting Hlozek leave last season we needed to work quick to get to spend that money to replace him so we have signed Javairo Dilrosun from Hertha for £15 million. He will be playing down the left wing. He has been a regular for the German side since joining from Man City so he brings a lot of experience with him.

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Next in we needed a new LB so we scoured Europe looking for a couple of players and first in is Mitchel Bakker who joins from PSG for £300,000. He showed a lot of promise early in his career to get his move to Paris but has never been given a chance so we bring him back to Holland to see if he can fulfil his potential at the club.

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Next we signed Jairo Riedewald from Sheffield United for £4.3 million. He's an extremely versatile player and can play in a number of positions so he will fight for the LB spot along with being able to provide cover in a number of other positions. He has plenty of experience in the Premier League and Eredivisie from his time at Ajax.

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We needed a keeper to replace Padt so we looked to see who we could poach from the league and we found that Utrecht were going to allow Maarten Paes leave the club for £4.5 million. He has been the first team keeper there for the last 4 seasons and will now give Slor some competition and we might call on him in the cup as well.

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Finally we bring in somebody else who had a lot of potential before a move to Liverpool and then just hasn't made the progression that was hopped for him but we're happy to bring Sepp Van Den Berg back to Holland on a free transfer to provide cover for CB.

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Overall I've pretty happy with this transfer business as we have managed to bring in a number of Dutch players that will push the club forward. We still have this season's budget to spend if the right players become available.

So far we have also been able to keep Arezo as nobody is willing to pay what we want for him just now which is a big bonus as the players I was looking at to replace him aren't interested in joining us just now.

Expectations

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Again nothing too difficult from the board as I will be looking to retain the title with finishing 2nd place at the worst. In the Champions League we will see what the group stage provides for us but I'd like to finish in 3rd as a minimum.

Formation

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This is how we will be looking to set up this season playing in a 4-2-3-1 formation and its good to see that there are only 3 players out of the 11 who aren't Dutch and this will reduce if we can get the right players in.

Preseason

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With us getting all our transfer deals sorted before the last season ended then it meant we had everybody we needed before we started preseason and that showed with a massive win against Lyon right at the start.

The big game at the end of July though was the Johan Cruijff Schaal against Ajax and this time we were playing at home since we won the league last season. But alas it was the same old story with Ajax scoring the winning goal in the 80th minute to record yet another win over us. Even after that loss we will still go into the season hoping that this will be our season where we get the double win over them.

August

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A nice easy start to the month before we finish it with 2 big games against AZ and Feyenoord.​
 
As a dutchman I really love to see the stories where the hegemony of the top 3 is broken (Ajax, PSV & Feyenoord). But I'm actually really interested in the coefficients since you did well in the CL, can you post a picture of it?:). Hopefully the Netherlands are climbing the ladder.

Keep up the good work!
 
As a dutchman I really love to see the stories where the hegemony of the top 3 is broken (Ajax, PSV & Feyenoord). But I'm actually really interested in the coefficients since you did well in the CL, can you post a picture of it?:). Hopefully the Netherlands are climbing the ladder.

Keep up the good work!
We've just got Holland moved up to 7th in the list

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August

FC Utrecht v FC Groningen


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Its a tricky start to the season and we've made to work for it as we have to fight back but the goal right before half time was enough to take the wind out of them.

FC Groningen v Sparta Rotterdam

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A much better result and it was good to see Dilrosun getting his first goal for the club before Arezo starts getting in on the action to pick up where he left off from last season.

FC Groningen v AZ

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Why is it always him. We rely so much on Arezo for goals it unreal but as long as he's at the club we'll take it.

Feyenoord v FC Groningen

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Neither team really bothered the other hear and a draw was a fair result even if it was disappointing from my point of view.

League

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We're second just now but I don't see Volendam as challengers this season but we have an all important 2 point lead over Ajax at the moment.

Champions League

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Its a horrendous group this season as its going to be big games against Inter and Chelsea with Lille being the only team in the group we might have a chance against.

September

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2 big games to start the month but at least we have the international break before them so the players will hopefully all come back fit.

Transfers

We have seen two players leave the club this month as Daniel Van Kaam joined ADO Den Haag for £3.4 million as he had fallen further down the pecking order and then on transfer deadline day we let Carel Eiting join Hella Verona for £15 million. He made 24 appearances for us last season but the chance to make a £12 million profit off of him was just too much when he wasn't a starter.

The money from Eiting was then very quickly spent on a player I've been trying to sign for a couple of seasons but AZ were unwilling to sell for a sensible fee so we took our chance when he was transfer listed for wanting more football so we finally signed Ted Spruit for £13 million and rising to £15 million after 50 appearances. He looks like a great addition to the squad and could become the center of Hollands midfield in a few years


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wow that midfielder looks incredible! Also how is that striker Bouw developing after you got him in the youth intake? I've had quite a few players come through the youth intake that I wasn't really impressed by but after 1 or 2 years they look like they could become decent prospects
 
wow that midfielder looks incredible! Also how is that striker Bouw developing after you got him in the youth intake? I've had quite a few players come through the youth intake that I wasn't really impressed by but after 1 or 2 years they look like they could become decent prospects
Thankfully he had developed well in AZ's Under 18 team over the last couple of seasons.

Bouw is going well so far. He will be promoted up at some point this season and given a run out. Hopefully get a good draw in the cup and he can get a start or two there.

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Thankfully he had developed well in AZ's Under 18 team over the last couple of seasons.

Bouw is going well so far. He will be promoted up at some point this season and given a run out. Hopefully get a good draw in the cup and he can get a start or two there.

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He looks insane! 16 finishing, a model citizen and only 15 years old as well
 
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