"The Titan" <---> OLIVER KAHN is back!

RenQ said:
No negotiation possible for Scuffet?? Not even a little bit?

Well if anything Leno could be the one, maybe about 35-40M? How are his stats looking?
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I mean for Scuffet Udinese are negotiating like $15-20m upfront and like $50-60m over 48 months..
For Ter Stegen Barca are willing to take $20m upfront and about $60m over 48 months!

I know these are crazy fees, but both Horn and Handanovic have departed from the team.. combined they have gone for $35m and 50% sell on for both! Horn was unhappy and unwilling to listen to any offers either.. Handanovic despite his real life performances didn't save a single penalty for me and barely kept a clean sheet!!

I have got tonnes of money at the moment so not really bothered about fees, but want someone who can solve my GK issues for at least a decade!

Leno undoubtedly looks good.

Ter Stegen is rated at 4 full stars CA and 4.5 PA by my scouts..

Scuffet is 2.5 stars CA while 4 PA..

and Leno is on 3.5 stars CA currently with 4 stars PA!
 
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Ter Stegen while world class he'll take a big chunk of your money and Scuffet is probably not up to his full potential just yet while Leno seems a bit more developed and on the cheaper side of things but probably won't get that bigger boost on atributes and leaves maybe without someone to get some return money out of the deals.

Any good GK prospects going on about?

Anyways, keep it up! They're all really good choices!
 
I've got about $300m+ to be adjusted in transfers and wages over the season, and a few player sales might still happen!

And in general now I'd need a main GK, back up LB, a 1st choice striker, and maybe a back up winger!
That's more or less what I am targeting for now.. Also, no top class GK regen that I can find so far..

Scuffet is 22, while both the German keepers are 26..
For back up GK I've picked up Jefferson, the Brazilian.. he is 35/36 years old..

Neuer, De Gea and Courtois are world class, but they are on way high wages and with their age and transfer fees, they are not viable options..
 
Shame about no Regen's.. that could've fixed 2 problems in one :'(

I guess now it depends if you want the instant stability or the development..

For Neuer, De Gea, Courtois, etc.. Those wages are probably killer since 2/3 are in the EPL. I:
 
RenQ said:
Shame about no Regen's.. that could've fixed 2 problems in one :'(

I guess now it depends if you want the instant stability or the development..

For Neuer, De Gea, Courtois, etc.. Those wages are probably killer since 2/3 are in the EPL. I:
Click to expand...

I'll look to scout extensively once again...
At the moment am occupied with the World Cup and will look at transfer targets once we are done with the WC!

A general idea on my team for the next season:

GK

Mario Fernandes
Papadopoulos/Gimenez
De Vrij
Sallahi

Hojbjerg
Kovacic
Verratti

Chamberlain
Calhanoglu

ST


The midfield looks to be my strongest area, and I'll look to control games, and get in a new striker who can play as a F9 easily!
 
Matia Perin has been good at AC Milan for me and was around 6 million from Genoa he will possibly be more further into the game but, could be a god option
 
ninjaskill said:
Matia Perin has been good at AC Milan for me and was around 6 million from Genoa he will possibly be more further into the game but, could be a god option
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Perin sadly hasn't developed on my save.. Maybe he didn't have a constant run like how you played him, hence he has suffered on my save! My scouts rate him at 2 stars with a max potential of 3, and seeing that I wouldn't play him regularly as a result of that, I wouldn't like to bring him here and waste his career!
I've bought Sixten Mehlin though, for cover.. he's young and came in cheap!
 
RenQ said:
Shame about no Regen's.. that could've fixed 2 problems in one :'(

I guess now it depends if you want the instant stability or the development..

For Neuer, De Gea, Courtois, etc.. Those wages are probably killer since 2/3 are in the EPL. I:
Click to expand...

There are a few regens, GK.. but they aren't good enough at the moment.. and at 16/17 years, they would be for the future... looking at a few regens though, but they wouldn't be regulars anytime soon..

I can get Rulli back as there is a 50% resale value clause, but his wages are obscene! he's on $350k/w at PSG!
 
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So that's the team we go with into the World Cup!
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We should have won this game.. Spain were down to 10 men, and then 9! Nevertheless, the toughest game of the group is gone!
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This was better, way better! William Carvalho got the red for a moment of absolute idiocy!
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And we get the victory here to progress through to the next round! Absolute domination, but not as many goals as we probably deserved. Still, no qualms as we go through to the next round!
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Spain won their final game comfortably. Both teams (Portugal & Spain) were tied on points (7 each) but Spain topped the group with a much better goal difference.

As a result, we drew GERMANY in the knock out round!
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Ouch! It was written in the script somewhere, for KAHN to face Germany!​
 
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Germany- Our toughest test at the World Cup! They are the current Cup holders, and knowing some of their players, I know they can hurt us pretty bad on their day!
"On their day......."

I asked the lads to hold on to the ball, not to let Germany take their chances, throw their bodies on at the ball- I mean do just about anything to prevent Germany from scoring! We committed a lot of fouls, but that again was part of my instructions to prevent Germany to build their tempo!
That they did, and we took the game into extra time, and then penalties- the boys were fatigued- both teams, and it showed! We practised a lot of penalties, and it paid off ultimately!
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We face probably the easiest opponents in South Africa next!
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Bad, bad news! Rui Patricio- our GK is out injured!
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Oliveira getting a brace, & Ronaldo another goal to take us into the semi-finals! This was a good result for us, and not exactly a bad team, South Africa aren't what you would call as tough as Spain or Germany either!
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And we face Brazil in the semi-finals! Tough game this one, no doubt!
Brazil took an early lead courtesy Neymar who scored a goal from distance. A 50/50 possession through the game, but we had much more chances, and late into the game in the second half of extra time, Ronaldo scored the winner, after which we just sat back and defended with almost every one back in the box!
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PORTUGAL IN FINAL VS HOLLAND
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Richairo Zivkovic is playing insanely! 10 goals for him already in the WC!​
 

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I called a team meeting before the final game to discuss strategy and give them instructions.


I started, "We have played well throughout this campaign, and find ourselves in the final! Having never won the WC, you all must be itching to change history, right?!" A lot of YES from the boys!
I continued, "And also, throughout the campaign, we have dominated games and played entertaining soccer! We dominated against Germany and Spain as well earlier, and against the weaker teams we could have scored a dozen or half as well! But that's not what we are to discuss here!"
Eyebrows raised, all the players were attentive at their best now!

"In the last few days and games, you have shown to the world that you can play football that's entertaining to the eye- the silky passes, tiki-taka exercises and so on! Brilliant work at that!"

"But now, scrap all that! Forget tiki-taka, forget holding the ball to keep possession, forget to pick pin point passes, just forget the way we have been playing!"

A lot of surprised faces, and questions in their eyes!

"Well, the thing is, we are facing Holland who are on a very fine run! They were in the final and the semi-final in the last 2 Cups, and they are itching to get it right this time! Zivkovic, I know him when he was in my club, and he can terrorize any defence- ask the teams that have faced him so far!"

"For this game, remember De Jong- the way he played the 2010 WC! Those Kung-Fu kicks and physical battle. Remember Pepe who was a part of our team a few years back! That is how I want you to play this game! Terrorize the Dutch this time. Show them that you don't care that there is a man in black in the middle.. Play in such a way that the Dutch would be afraid to come into our half with the ball!"

"Now, for this game, there would be a lot of changes.
Carvalho will play as a ball playing defender at centre-back, and his work would be to "take care" of Zivkovic!
Carrico & Maicon would partner in defence alongside Carvalho, and they would take their regular roles.
Just remember no short passings required here! Go for the long balls, clear ball to wide areas!
Cedric & Antunes, play slightly up and wide from your positions! Run as high up the pitch as you can, and target the top right corner of far post for your crosses!
Ruben, you are to control the game from middle! Stay in the centre of the pitch, and ****** the ball away at every possibility!
Fernandes & Moutinho, run and run and run! Hassle them, and make it sure they are comfortable with the ball in their own deep half- not ours!
Cristiano & Venancio, you are free to play as you please! Free roles for both of you! Sit in the middle, drift wide, drift inside, just do whatever it takes to disrupt the Dutch back line!"

"Shoot at sight, all of you! And tackle hard, harder, hardest!"

"Give it your best! I know you can make it happen!"

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​
 
The tactic and logic was simple..

Let Holland keep more of the ball, but in their own defensive area.

Their center backs were unmarked and un-targeted. No player to care for that, actually!

Their full backs were occupied by our wide attacking players..

Our full backs targeted their wide players, our central midfielders went one on one with theirs..
Ruben Neves to take care of their attacking midfielder, and well, William Carvalho was deployed in the back 3 only to take care of Zivkovic..

I handed out the team instructions, and they were as simple as it could get.
Direct passing
Clear ball to flanks
Run into the defenders when attacking to draw fouls
Close down more
Play wider as a unit.. this basically so that our defence could look and play like a proper back 3, while our full backs were to occupy the wider areas and the attacking duo to sit narrower so that we could disrupt the Dutch team's shape!
Shoot on sight- absolutely! Ronaldo can create havoc with his fierce long shots, and he had total freedom to do as he pleased! Similarly, the midfield trio was also instructed to attempt the long shots! All of them have a good powerful long shot in them, and it was an idea to try our luck from distance, as working slowly towards a build up play we might not break the resilient Dutch defense!
High tempo with the ball as we have quick wide players when attacking!
Get stuck in! Just tackle and win the ball back. No need to worry about fouls or getting the cards!

The main thing was, our players have been fatigued in the last few days, and the same is the case with the Dutch as well. All these players need rest. Hence playing a possession based game would require more fitness than otherwise!
So we opted to stick to positions more or less, with the attacking wide players free to roam, while the two central midfielders would run all through the pitch.

I had a couple of substitute options who could change games and impact with their game style! Josue with his set pieces, Nani and Bruma with their pace in general..



Next update: The final game and result, other WC reviews and so on. After that we focus on club football, transfers, and the forth coming season.
 

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WORLD CUP FINAL MATCH

HOLLAND vs PORTUGAL


We had a lot less possession- 41% to 59%...
Our shots on target was also poor- as players were going for shots from way outside!
Number of passes and pass completion also unlike how I generally get my team to play...
But what mattered the most- that we achieved!
It was surprising to see that none of our players picked any bookings!
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Amazing performance all around the team. We defended with almost everyone at the back, only 2 players- the attacking players on the counter and attack! Carvalho scored the first goal from close range, then Josue who came on as a sub at half time scored from long range- an amazing goal to double the lead. At 2-1 it seemed Holland would probably equalize, but we kept it tight at the back, and in turn scored one on a quick counter!
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WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS!!!
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WC results from the knock out stages!
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That's the WC dream team- main and subs!
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Ronaldo resonates the mood of the team!
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Portugal fixtures before and during the World Cup!
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Called it quits! I was juggling a lot between club and nation, and I have more than achieved what was expected from this team! Another thing to note is that under my management, Portugal did not lose a single game!
As it's said, one should depart when the head is high, I am leaving with the team in perfect shape, young players and a few seniors, and a lot of stability!
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TRANSFER UPDATES : PLAYERS OUT

Some of the players that have departed so far now...


Destro never found form or consistency here for us. He's a very talented player, undoubtedly, but unfortunately for us and him, it didn't work out here. Though it has to be said he learned a few things here, so definitely he will have a great career at United, and we get a lot of money from the deal!
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Sahin served his purpose here. That probably sums it all. He was bought in when we were trying to bring in high profile players, attracting big names, and Sahin did well whenever called upon. As he was no longer seen as a first choice, or even the next choice back-up, it was best for him to move on for regular football.
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De Vrij, Jose Maria Gimenez, Matthias Ginter, Carl Davies, and a few youngsters... I was looking to get rid of one of the centre backs to give the others a fair chance.. De Vrij is the pick of the bunch.. Gimenez has lots of potential, and selling him now would be premature. Papadopoulos is a good CB, but he's way too aggressive, and injury prone as well. We made a good profit on this deal, allowing me to invest even more for the future- young players from all around the world!
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Munir wanted a move. He wanted to play in England! It was a lot of money on a player we signed for free just a season earlier! I have Viktor Fischer, and a few names I have been looking at, so Munir was expendable!
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A good deal for us!
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Oliver wasn't gonna feature much.. A talented young player, but that $25m was worth more to us than him not being given much chances! $25m + 50% sell on! ;)
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Mario Fernandes was solid last season. And I was absolutely certain some or the other team would come calling for him! He came to me stating Juventus' interest in him, and he was adamant over a move! Not willing to enter any contract talks, and when Juve came calling, I decided it was better to have the money than a player who was looking for a move on soon!
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Kondogbia was consistent and very good last season, but with the new look midfield, and what I want from my team, the players, he didn't fit in... His 2 consecutive red cards were still fresh in my memory, hence, a very good deal for him- and he moves to Liverpool!
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Sami is injury prone, and most importantly, he wasn't gonna feature much this season. Hence, I allowed him to leave to join a more relaxed league and team.. We absolutely thank him for his service here, albeit for a short period of time, but he provided much help for the youngsters!
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Handanovic never impressed me. Period!
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Horn was unsettled, not willing to enter contract talks, wanted more money, and so on... Not a huge profit as I expected we could make when we bought him for $11m..
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ADDRESSING THE GOALKEEPER CRISIS/ISSUE


The most important issue that confronted me was finding the perfect Goal Keeper for us. I mean, OLIVER KAHN unable to identify the correct GK for the team!
I narrowed down to 3 options- Ter Stegen, Bernd Leno and Simone Scuffet.
Leno would cost $44m and about $200k/w wages.
Scuffet would cost about $60m, and $100k/w wages, but he's still a couple of years short of hitting the right form and development.
Ter Stegen would cost about $80m and $300k/w wages!

Ter Stegen>Leno>Scuffet currently, and over the next few years, Leno and Scuffet would probably swap the positions!
I identified Ter Stegen as the correct choice, despite the enormous transfer fee! That I justified by a number of player sales over the years, the profits, and so on.
I was getting a solid German GK with the potential to be probably the best/in the top 3 of the best GK's in the world!

It took me weeks of negotiations with Barca, but ultimately, I found the correct deal.

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And the right contract!
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And here's how he looks now!
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Yeoo!! Well done on the World Cup win!!

Great to see Ronaldo finally get some silverware with his national team...even if it is only fictional :p
 


Xabi Alonso hangs up his boots. One of the best players of his generation, he joins our backroom!
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Markovic had his contract running down in 12 months... He's highly talented, and though I was looking for an AML, I opted to for him at AMR, and use someone else from our team on the other flank!
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Sinan Kurt was available for dirt cheap! No brainer!!
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We rise in the world finance rankings...
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From $0 in transfer fees, and $130k/w overall wages to this in 4 years!
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Disclaimer89 said:
Yeoo!! Well done on the World Cup win!!

Great to see Ronaldo finally get some silverware with his national team...even if it is only fictional :p
Click to expand...

That was special! The final indeed... Just went to play opposite to how I have always gone about playing with my teams, and it really paid off! :)
 
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