The Football Managing Mercenary

[DerbyJack]

Thank you so much for the kind words guys, means alot.

As it stands I was going to take a break from the world of Football-Manager but apparently I have an addiction problem...

For those of you that prefer to remember things before they became cheaper, tackier and generally a lot worse its probably time to close down this tab and pretend the following post never happened...

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I kissed the badge, I waved to the crowd, I cried buckets of tears and swore I did it all for the club...

...Until a better offer came along, that is.


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So my first attempt at my own challenge has ended in complete failure.

My hard-drive took a Sunday-league style two footed challenge to the face and gave up the ghost taking my entire career with it.

If I had any pride or even an ounce of common-sense I would walk away from this career and let fate take care of the rest but I can't quite let this career die without giving it one disappointing attempt at a come-back.

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So here's the Football Managing Mercenary 1.5

Pep Guardiola	Jose Mourinhio	Arsene Wenger
Bayern Munich	Chelsea	Arsenal
£165,000 per week	£145,000 per week	£145,000 per week

The boys are back.

Given that I have no means of reloading my previous career and don't see the point in holidaying for the next decade, its back to present day and the return of the top three earners in the world for Pep, Jose and the much missed Arsene Wenger.

As I unfortunately don't have the will to start this career from the start nor the self-loathing to put myself back into non-league football I've opted to keep my Sunday-League reputation and the Continental Badge's I had managed to obtain in my previous career and I'm returning to the club that I had just managed to break into the top flight of English Football.​

Derby Jack

Leicester City

£18,750 per week

So here we go again. Same rules as before, Any job offers that come with higher wages then my current club can offer and I'm off. I understand if some of you no longer follow along and trust me I completely understand if you do but I just can't let this go...​

I'm a Time-travelling, football managing, mercenary. Its time to see where my wallet takes me.

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No loyalty. No dignity. Just a burning desire to make some more money!
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[Death Ball]

Yay! Good way to get back to it.

 

[DerbyJack]

Thanks Deathball! I hope so, It's the only thing I could think of...

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So here we go again.

From the year 2023 back to where it all began 2015. Did I mention I'm a time traveler?

Having guided the team back to the Premier League in rampant style Eight years into the future I now look to try and emulate my success with the team Nigel Pearson has crafted into a top-flight force.

Now with an instant start in the Premier League my wages have taken a sizable boost, everything seems all too easy. However things aren't quite so comfortable.

Having kept my Sunday League experience and with only a handful of qualifications to my name I have but one opportunity to prove myself in England's most unforgiving league. Any slip ups, any brief wobbles even any way-ward defeats and the fans, players and even more importantly the board will quickly turn on me.

View attachment 164686
View attachment 164685
A clean slate.

Through-out my career, the Foxes have become somewhat of a Yo-yo club, constantly dropping in and out of the Premier League. If I am to get this career back on track then I'm going to need to ensure the same fate does not repeat itself this time around.

With the board aiming for a Mid-table finish, the squad bursting with talent and a potentially wide-open Premier League ahead of us, its going to be a ground-breaking season ahead for me. Time to prove myself once more.

This is not going to be easy.

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[DerbyJack]

Completely forgot that I also need to install all the graphics I had previously... That took a while.
​

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As mentioned above, Leicester have not yet been touched by the magic hand of Claudio Ranieri and are currently suffering the after-math of Nigel Pearson's departure.

In come's a complete unknown who needs to build upon their steady start to life in the top-flight.

​

A large and talented squad now lies under my disposal.

Having survived their return to the Premier League last season, the Foxes will be keen to ensure that they are not dragged into a relegation dog-fight this time around and have certainly set about pulling together a team that should see them comfortably avoid that dreaded fate.

Two of the players that are going to have a huge say in the outcome of the entire season will be familiar names to most...​

The myth, the legend, the Germany vanquishing hero, Jamie Vardy. His heroics in real life remain unearthed here but with all that ability, pace and pure determination the Twenty-Eight year old could well make an absolutely huge impact in the forth coming season. As my lone-striker he is set to play a key role regardless. No pressure Jamie.​

The Algerian enigma, Riyad Mahrez. Emerging from the depths of France, Mahrez has developed into one of the most influential midfielders in the world. With the ability to work his way through the hardest of defences and and the finishing akin to the most lethal of strikers, our right winger should be on for a sensational season with the Foxes.



It's a cracking team, one which was certainly a world away from what I experienced last season.

With a transfer window fast approaching, I don't think I'm actually going to be up to much other then trying to convince everyone that I do actually deserve my place at the head of the club.
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[Nnicod55]

Glad to see you back! Well to speak(well write) the truth I didn't know you was gone...

 

[Raaritsgozilla]

Stoked to see this back up and running! Also good to see Leicester primed to replicate real life

 

[dani3w]

Great seeing you revive this one way or another!

 

[DerbyJack]

I'm sneaky like that Nnicod. Thanks!

Hopefully Gozilla but Claudio has set the bar very high!

Cheers Dan, here's hoping​

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So enough of the stalling, time to try and wake up and get back to business.

First things first, the Summer transfer window. With a superb squad at my disposal, I'm actually not looking forward to this one...

Well we survived that relatively unscathed.

The big boys never truly made their moves on some of our star players allowing me to relax and get to know the team that now lies at my disposal.

However thats not to say there was no business done in Leicester as Jurgen Klopp makes a bid for winger Marc Albrighton. With Mahrez in front of him in the pecking order, the departure of the promising Englishman is no great loss and a cool Eight million pounds will certainly bolster the funds very nicely and I didn't waste any time spending it...

From: Ajax
Cost: £8.5 million​

First arrival is Danish wonderkid, Viktor Fischer. The former Ajax starlet arrives to fill in a rather gaping hole on the left wing as i look to recreate the tactic that turned by career around Eight years into the future. With Determination and Flair in abundance the young winger could well be dancing his way past the best defenders England has to offer.

From: River Plate
Cost: £4.5 million​

Alerted by one of my Scouts on my first day in the job we started a bidding war on young Emanuel Mammana with a host of big names joining us in the hunt for one of the most promising defenders in the world today. Fortunately for the Foxes, a promise of first-team football combined with wages to match, soon had the Argentine rejecting the likes of Chelsea and Arsenal for the East Midlands.



All in all a quiet but productive window.

I still have a nice Four million left to play with should the need arise but the truth is the work on this team has been done long before I arrived.

Leicester City have crafted a genuine Premier League force already. I just hope I match up.

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[DerbyJack]

Qatar, America, East Asia. The Premier League has a choice of exotic locations to travel to in the Pre-season and in fitting style the Foxes jetted off to the luxury of...Scotland

11th July 2015
Friendly

Kicking off our rain covered, misty tour through the land of Irn Bru and Haggis is an away tie against Patrick Thistle. The Scottish Premiership side shouldn't have proved to be too much of a challenge for the force of the Foxes but they certainly kicked things off with a bang, with only a Jamie Vardy goal being enough to stop us from suffering a disappointing start to our road trip.


13th July 2015
Friendly

Having learnt our lessons from the previous game we ensured that we started the game against St Johnstone in rampant fashion as the increasingly impressive Vardy tucking home a penalty within five minutes. Unfortunately despite scoring the early goal we failed to remember how to maintain a clean sheet as St Johnstone scored a second-half equaliser.


16th July 2015
Friendly

Third game was the charm for the Foxes as we put together all our lessons from the previous two games to cruise past Dunfermline. Third in a row for Jamie Vardy as the Englishman ensures that he remains at the forefront of the Scottish attack whilst an own goal adds to the impressive display at the mid-way point of our travels.


18th July 2015
Friendly

He just keeps getting better. Vardy makes it five goals in our four warm-up games with two neat finishes against a poor Dundee. If he can keep this form running in the league I am sure to make a massive impact with the Foxes. Vardy is already shaping up to be a crucial part of my future and we've not even officially got under-way.


25th July 2015
Friendly

Well that just about proves it. Jamie Vardy defines Leicester City. Ensuring that he has scored in every single game of the warm-up as the English-man lives up to his reputation as one of the most consistent finishers in the game today. Despite his efforts the defence again proves to be a point of concern as we let slip our early lead. Always room for improvement.



With Jamie Vardy basically ensuring that I forget about my favorite futuristic Brazilian in the Pre-season alone, I head back from the mammoth journey up North eager to see the Englishman emulate this form in the league...

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[Raaritsgozilla]

Not bad Scottish sojourn. I'm just starting a Leicester save myself after finally buying Fm16. That Liverpool bid for Albrighton is pretty regular. I never thought of trying for Fischer, good plan.

 

[dani3w]

A couple decent new faces there DJ! And a successful Scottish Tour

 

[DerbyJack]

Cheers Gozilla, truth be told I could have got more for him but bottled selling him at first until I knew Fischer was available. Hope your save is going well!

Thanks Dan, I hope they live up to their potential, always good to keep the neighbors quiet!

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August 2015

9th August 2015
Premier League

Well that's one solid way to get my career back under-way. Vardy continues on from his goal scoring frenzy in the pre-season as he opens the scoring just before the break, whilst on loan winger, Nathan Dyer warms himself to his new fan-base with a debut goal to secure all three points despite a late attempt at a Southampton comeback.


15th August 2015
Premier League

Building on our impressive opening game we make short work of Watford following a sloppy start to the game. Fortunatley for the Foxes, Vardy once again returns to the scoresheet, with a Mahrez penalty and another goal from former Swan Nathan Dyer completing the away day rout.


22nd August 2015
Premier League

Our winning streak comes to an end but once again Jamie Vardy is back on the scoresheet. The English finisher has started life in the top-flight in rampant style but for once his efforts where not enough to overcome Swansea as their first-half goal proves to be enough to share the spoils.


25th August 2015
Capital One Cup - 2nd Round

Our second string side gets an early run out in the League Cup and new signing, Mammana gladly takes up the opportunity to showcase his talents as the Argentine defender rises highest from a corner to smash home an impressive header that saw off a frustrated Posh.


29th August 2015
Premier League

Rounding off what has been an incredible debut month for both me and Jamie Vardy, the ever reliable finisher gleefully smashes home an efficent hat-trick to ease past Norwich. The pacey forward has got stuck into the Premier League in ruthless fashion with six goals in four games making him the most prolific finisher in the league already.


August 2015
Premier League

Well with the club off to a flying start in the league we find ourselves quickly up to the all important top four positions, mixing it up in between the two Manchester giants. With a huge chunk of the season still remaining and a relatively easy start to the season, I'm not going to get too far ahead of myself just yet.​

 

[Seano]

Great to see you back mate.

 

[DerbyJack]

Cheers Seano, I'm slightly addicted

Sorry again for the long delay, I took my old hard-drive in to work in a slim hope that I might be able to recover it there but its definitely bitten the dust....back to the future/history career?

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September 2015

12th September 2015
Premier League

An international break saw us forced to wait for the tie again Manchester United but it was more then worth the wait. Jamie Vardy continued his fine run of goal scoring into the next month with the opening goal but its was young winger Demari Gray who scored the winning goal to introduce himself to the Leicester crowd in style.


19th September 2015
Premier League

Our unbeaten streak comes to an abrupt end at the Emirates stadium and Vardy's goal scoring run ends with it. A thrilling game against Arsenal saw us go toe to toe with their French striker, Oliver Giroud. The much questioned striker certainly ensured that he would silence the critics as he smashed home a game winning hat-trick including a last ditch winner. A cruel but impressive display.


22nd September 2015
Capital One Cup - 3rd Round

We bounce back from the defeat with another impressive display from the second-string side in the League Cup. Former Premier League outfit Burnley certainly had the ability to cause an upset but our fringe players more then met up to expectations securing a comfortable victory and passage into the next round.


27th September 2015
Premier League

The boys are cruising through the league at the minute and despite a recent slip up against the Gunners they continue to find the back of the net with ease as Jamie Vardy returns to the score-sheet with a superb brace, whilst Japanese star, Okazaki smashed home one of his own to secure the victory in style.


September 2015
Premier League

With the club seemingly able to go up against the best that the league has to offer we find ourselves climbing into the top three in these early stages. With Thirty One games remaining there certainly is a **** of a long way to go but given our current start, we have already proven we can mix it with the Big boys in the league.

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[DerbyJack]

October 2015

3rd October 2015
Premier League

Having beaten two of the most successful clubs in English and European history last month a tie against bottom of the table, Newcastle should have been an easy tie but the Geordies were not going to lie down without a fight. Pacey striker Doumbia fired them into the lead, with Ayoze Perez doubling it in a dominant second half for Steve McClaren's men. This suddenly doesn't seem so easy.


17th October 2015
Premier League

With Newcaslte gladly snatching up the opportunity to climb up the table, the Baggies soon came a knocking looking for their own boost to their standings but The Foxes were in no mood to spread the wealth as they sneak past following an end to end first-half, that saw our midfield take center stage.


24th October 2015
Premier League

Well that was surprising. On the back of two rather close games against lowly opponents, we went into the Chelsea game dreading the worst but Jamie Vardy certainly had other ideas. The rapidly rising striker continues to grow as a player with a hat-trick seeing off the Mighty Blues, with Okazaki once again taking the opportunity to showcase what the talented midfielder can do.


28th October 2015
Capital One Cup - 4th Round

With the club still on the high of thrashing one of Europe's finest teams we went into the tie against Spurs full of confidence but the table topping Londoners certainly weren't prepared to let us run riot like their cross-town rivals. A battle of the Asian finishers ensued with Tottenham's Heung-Min proving to be the best on this occasion, guiding his team closer to the final.


October 2015
Premier League

Once again its another fairly impressive month from the team despite the minor hiccup against Newcastle mid-way through. We remain in among the best the league has to offer, including the recently humiliated Chelsea. With my contract only currently running to the end of this season, this kind of impressive start could well see me getting a new offer fairly quickly.

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[DerbyJack]

November 2015​

2nd November 2015
Premier League

With three months of solid football under our belts it seemed I was going to cruise my way through the league but Stoke soon started what would prove to be a disastrous run of form to put things back into perspective. A ruthless first-half saw five goals fly into either end of the stadium with the Potters emerging victorious following a three goal demolition job within almost ten minutes.


7th November 2015
Premier League

Bournemouth should by all rights be the whipping boys of the league this season but the plucky Cherries are in no mood to live up to the form-book and have shocked their way into the the European spots at this early stage of the season. Needing to bounce back from the defeat against Stoke they soon denied us the opportunity with a resolute defensive display.


21st November 2015
Premier League

...And this is where the wheels fell off. West Ham demolished us at Upton Park. A Jamie Vardy goal before the first half break gave us the prime opportunity to push on for the points but we instead gave up the fight, gifting the Hammers three goals in the second half as we collapsed in shocking fashion. Following the defeat I laid into the players and only managed to cause a rift between me and the players already....I have a lot to learn still.


28th November 2015
Premier League

A tie against Manchester City was never going to be easy but the game was a complete disaster as we once again collapsed in the second half. Apparently the boys just don't have the legs to see out the game, with City's Superstars gleefully picking up the goals to secure the victory, despite a late consolation goal from the ever present Vardy.


November 2015
Premier League

Having picked up just one point from a possible twelve we have found ourselves spiraling down the table and now occupy a spot rooted in mid-table. Given our performances in the previous month I would normally not panic over a minor blip but with the squad quickly begging to turn on me following the hair-dryer treatment at the end of the Hammers game, I'm seriously worried that they might be about to turn on me just like Bristol Rovers and Northampton have done to me before....History is repeating itself.
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[Raaritsgozilla]

But how about that Bournemouth league position!

 

[DerbyJack]

Bournemouth are showing me exactly how it should be done!

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December 2015

6th December 2015
Premier League

Table topping Spurs was hardly a fitting opponent needed for to end an early season wobble but surprisingly we managed to come out of the game with at least a point. Spurs seemed to have the points in the bag following a horror-challenge from Jamie Vardy saw him sent off but on-loan winger Nathan Dyer defied the odds to fire home a late equaliser to send silence around the home section of White-Hart lane.


12th December 2015
Premier League

With no Vardy on the pitch and the team still unable to gel with me, Everton quickly took advantage infront of a despondent home crowd to score two Lukaku goals within just fifteen minutes and doom us to another disappointing defeat. This winless streak is starting to gather some rather worrying momentum.


16th December 2015
Premier League

Well that just about confirms it, we are on one **** of a slide. A weak Sunderland team absolutely destroy us with ease as we once again fail to show up for the opening moments of the game, as the Black Cats score two goals within just six minutes to settle the tie before it even gets underway.


19th December 2015
Premier League

It just keeps getting worse. Crystal Palace take a two goal lead without so much as a whimper from the Foxes. Despite seeing the Eagles reduced down to ten men following a crunching tackle on Jamie Vardy we could do little to take make the most of our numerical advantage as we once again miss out on the points.


26th December 2015
Premier League

A relegation threatened Aston Villa ensure that it is a miserable festive season for the Leicester City faithful as our boxing day clash goes up in smoke following a frantic opening Twenty minutes, as Villa find the net three times in quick succession including an unfortunate own goal from keeper, Brad Guzan. Not even that could save us.


28th December 2015
Premier League

Having just been beaten by Palace before Christmas, a crazy fixture schedule see's us collide once more just days before the turn of the new year. Keen to restore some pride from the previous result and more importantly looking for an end to our winless streak, we so very nearly came to ending it had it not been for a crazy own-goal from our unfortunate young winger, Gray.


December 2015
Premier League

Following a shockingly bad month, the only surprise is that we haven't fallen further. With our winless streak well and truly locked in, we are on a one-way trip to the relegation zone. Things need to turn around and quickly. Without the players on my side, the fans growing understandably impatient and the board starting to realise they have an inexperienced, untested manager on their hands, I'm starting to feel rather uncomfortable in the East Midlands.

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[PatrickLFC]

Tough run Jack but that's what makes this story so interesting! Hopefully you can pull another rabbit out of the hat

 

[DerbyJack]

Cheers Patrick, it certainly makes it more interesting when I'm not even keeping my job, let alone renewing my contract. I think my days here are certainly numbered!

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With my career seriously underthreat, the January transfer window gave me a welcome opportunity to try and get things back on track.

With the club having already proven that they are more then capable of mixing it with the best the league has to offer, I wasn't yet set on transforming the entire team in one giant blowout.

That said however their is still some deadwood floating around the squad which is doing little to boost some already dwindling morale in the changing room. If I'm to get this team back on track, I'm going to need to shell out those who aren't prepared to fight for their place in the team quickly

Two first team members are shown the door with Argentinian striker Ulloa departing as the transfer window opens. The former leading striker of the Foxes has been out done by the emergence of Jamie Vardy and welcomed the opportunity for a leading role with the Swans. Last to leave was Waisilweski, the Polish defender has fallen well short of the level required in the top-flight and made a late return back to his home country.

The two departures were hardly ground-breaking but with Mahrez and Vardy both rumoured to be linked with some of Europes finest clubs and Mahrez openly stating he wanted a move for Continental football, I was bracing for the worst. As it turned out neither got the move they craved leaving me with a late drive to bring in some suitable additions to the team...

From: Sion
Cost: £1.3 million​

An absolute bargain of a transfer. Edmilson Fernandes is an exciting midfield talents to have emerged from the heart of the Alps and the Twenty Year old certainly has the potential to match up to the likes of his country-man Shaqiri. With a dire need for a play-making attacking midfielder, Fernandes could well suite the bill perfectly.

From: CSKA Moscow
Cost: £6 million​

Having saved money on the signing of Fernandes, I splashed the cash on landing Swedish prodigy, Carlos Strandberg. The young bull of a striker arrives to the squad as the prodigy of current goal scoring phenom, Jamie Vardy. With Age on his side and more then a few opportunities to pick up game time in the coming season, Strandberg could soon become the new talisman for the foxes.




With no major departures I opted to spend the remainder of my transfer budget on bringing in some young prospects that could well replace some of the players I see departing the club in the very near future.
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