England are awarded 3 Europa league spots. 5th in the league, FA cup winners, League Cup winners. What usually happens is that the teams that win the FA cup and League Cup are already in the top 5 and so these europen places go to 6th and 7th in the league. However if a team outside the top 7 then wins a European competition this could get complicated. So looks like you have just missed out on Europe this season. Did Arsenal win the champions league?
UK Journeyman
- Thread starter sek729
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Arsenal DID win the Champions League, 2-1 extra time over Barca. Did that affect a placing?
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For reading that, I understood that 7th automatically gets it, and from reading wiki below, I thought if the FA Cup doubles up on one, it goes to the 8th spot?
It also says that the minimum quota is seven and it can be as high as five for each the Champions League and Europa League.
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For reading that, I understood that 7th automatically gets it, and from reading wiki below, I thought if the FA Cup doubles up on one, it goes to the 8th spot?
It also says that the minimum quota is seven and it can be as high as five for each the Champions League and Europa League.
SUMMER 2029
Well it appears we did come up short of Europe, but the good news is that I have my squad to the the point where a minimal quantity of upgrades are necessary each year.
- Board agreed to expand seating by 3,000. This will bring Selhurst Park to 29,260 when construction is complete next year.
- Pushed the board to upgrade the youth facility (the second upgrade since I arrived here). We have Excellent youth facilities now, but I am aiming for World Class. Unless something wild happens, I could really envision staying at Crystal Palace for a long time and have them being my final club in this save.
KEY TRANSFERS OUT
DC Pedro Martins, $12.25m to Cardiff. Martins was our third central defender in the squad, and the 4th/5th choices are both very close to him, including a promising young 21 year old I wouldn't mind developing. Nice defender for us, but was worth too much and getting paid too much to justify keeping him here for 5-7 starts and 10-15 sub appearances.
DL Gary Tuck, $5.5m to Verona. I brought Tuck in last year for $3.2m and was mostly second choice left fullback. 12 matches, 6.75 rating. I upgraded the position this year, so Tuck as third choice was a surplus. Glad I turned a profit on him. Fee could rise to $7m.
KEY TRANSFERS IN
AMR Cristian Barrientos, $21.5m from Tigres (Mexico)
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23-year old Chilean international has traveled the west, from Chile to Brazil to Mexico. He will bump AMR Che Nunnelly (27 apps, 1 gls, 6 asts, 1 pom, 6.88) to backup. Below is the comparison between the two.
View attachment 101255
Give up a little speed for a ton of skill and notice the physicals. Barrientos is a mutant! Very nice upgrade for us.
DC Stephen Gamble, $13.25m from Derby.
View attachment 101252
Gamble is just that, a massive gamble! $13m is a lot of money from our club to invest in a 21 project. If he develops like my scouts believe he will, it'll be worth it.
DL Ivan Galvez, $5.75m from Velez Sarsfield (Argentina)
View attachment 101251
Back to South America for us for another bargain buy! Galvez upgrades our left back position, allowing us to move Tuck as mentioned earlier in this post. I made efforts to grab Galvez in the previous two windows but failed due to work permit issues, but now he's qualified.
Here is the comp between him and last year's starting DL Raul Rego:
View attachment 101250
Again, more size and skill. A solid upgrade for basically no cost since we moved Tuck.
AMC Miki Roque, On Loan from Barcelona.
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This was my number one target in the summer. I had a $32 million bid accepted but Roque was not interested in leaving Barca permanently. An expensive ($400k/month) loan deal will have to suffice. Maybe I can get him to fall in love with Palace and make him a permanent fixture next season.
Gorgeous looking attacking mid, was on loan at Hertha Berlin in the German First Divsiion last season, tallying 9 goals, 11 assists, 3 mom in 31 apps (7.28 avg rating). Can't wait to have him running my attack!
Here's the upgrade over last year's attacking playmaker, Martin Odegaard.
View attachment 101248
We had a strong preseason. We're ready to roll!
Well it appears we did come up short of Europe, but the good news is that I have my squad to the the point where a minimal quantity of upgrades are necessary each year.
- Board agreed to expand seating by 3,000. This will bring Selhurst Park to 29,260 when construction is complete next year.
- Pushed the board to upgrade the youth facility (the second upgrade since I arrived here). We have Excellent youth facilities now, but I am aiming for World Class. Unless something wild happens, I could really envision staying at Crystal Palace for a long time and have them being my final club in this save.
KEY TRANSFERS OUT
DC Pedro Martins, $12.25m to Cardiff. Martins was our third central defender in the squad, and the 4th/5th choices are both very close to him, including a promising young 21 year old I wouldn't mind developing. Nice defender for us, but was worth too much and getting paid too much to justify keeping him here for 5-7 starts and 10-15 sub appearances.
DL Gary Tuck, $5.5m to Verona. I brought Tuck in last year for $3.2m and was mostly second choice left fullback. 12 matches, 6.75 rating. I upgraded the position this year, so Tuck as third choice was a surplus. Glad I turned a profit on him. Fee could rise to $7m.
KEY TRANSFERS IN
AMR Cristian Barrientos, $21.5m from Tigres (Mexico)
View attachment 101256
23-year old Chilean international has traveled the west, from Chile to Brazil to Mexico. He will bump AMR Che Nunnelly (27 apps, 1 gls, 6 asts, 1 pom, 6.88) to backup. Below is the comparison between the two.
View attachment 101255
Give up a little speed for a ton of skill and notice the physicals. Barrientos is a mutant! Very nice upgrade for us.
DC Stephen Gamble, $13.25m from Derby.
View attachment 101252
Gamble is just that, a massive gamble! $13m is a lot of money from our club to invest in a 21 project. If he develops like my scouts believe he will, it'll be worth it.
DL Ivan Galvez, $5.75m from Velez Sarsfield (Argentina)
View attachment 101251
Back to South America for us for another bargain buy! Galvez upgrades our left back position, allowing us to move Tuck as mentioned earlier in this post. I made efforts to grab Galvez in the previous two windows but failed due to work permit issues, but now he's qualified.
Here is the comp between him and last year's starting DL Raul Rego:
View attachment 101250
Again, more size and skill. A solid upgrade for basically no cost since we moved Tuck.
AMC Miki Roque, On Loan from Barcelona.
View attachment 101249
This was my number one target in the summer. I had a $32 million bid accepted but Roque was not interested in leaving Barca permanently. An expensive ($400k/month) loan deal will have to suffice. Maybe I can get him to fall in love with Palace and make him a permanent fixture next season.
Gorgeous looking attacking mid, was on loan at Hertha Berlin in the German First Divsiion last season, tallying 9 goals, 11 assists, 3 mom in 31 apps (7.28 avg rating). Can't wait to have him running my attack!
Here's the upgrade over last year's attacking playmaker, Martin Odegaard.
View attachment 101248
We had a strong preseason. We're ready to roll!
Last edited:
2029 FIRST HALF ROLLER COASTER
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WOW, what a crazy start to the season!
We started the season well enough, 2 wins in our first 4 matches with two narrow 0-1 losses to Liverpool and Man City where we played well. I was encouraged by our start to the campaign.
Then it fell apart in the League!
A terrible 0-3 home loss to lowly Leicester after we had a guy sent off early and it just spiraled out of control from there. In the 9 Premier League matches from Sept 15 to Nov 24, we had 0 wins, 5 draws, 4 losses, despite it being a relatively weak stretch of schedule. We tumbled down to 16th, just out of the relegation zone.
But while all of this league carnage was going on, we quietly made a spectacular EFL Cup run, culminating in a wonderful 2-0 win over Liverpool in the quarterfinals.
It was around this time that our league form suddenly turned around and we rattled off a series of critical victories. In our last 7 Premier League matches, we won 5, draw 1, and lost 1. Miraculously, we find ourselves in 10th position at the midway point.
We have an EFL Cup Semi Final tie with Tottenham lurking. I would LOVE to just win the competition to fulfill our European dreams, but it won't be easy. The other side of the bracket has Chelsea squaring off against Championship strugglers Blackburn. The Blues have been dominating my save, having won 5 titles in the last 8 seasons.
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WOW, what a crazy start to the season!
We started the season well enough, 2 wins in our first 4 matches with two narrow 0-1 losses to Liverpool and Man City where we played well. I was encouraged by our start to the campaign.
Then it fell apart in the League!
A terrible 0-3 home loss to lowly Leicester after we had a guy sent off early and it just spiraled out of control from there. In the 9 Premier League matches from Sept 15 to Nov 24, we had 0 wins, 5 draws, 4 losses, despite it being a relatively weak stretch of schedule. We tumbled down to 16th, just out of the relegation zone.
But while all of this league carnage was going on, we quietly made a spectacular EFL Cup run, culminating in a wonderful 2-0 win over Liverpool in the quarterfinals.
It was around this time that our league form suddenly turned around and we rattled off a series of critical victories. In our last 7 Premier League matches, we won 5, draw 1, and lost 1. Miraculously, we find ourselves in 10th position at the midway point.
We have an EFL Cup Semi Final tie with Tottenham lurking. I would LOVE to just win the competition to fulfill our European dreams, but it won't be easy. The other side of the bracket has Chelsea squaring off against Championship strugglers Blackburn. The Blues have been dominating my save, having won 5 titles in the last 8 seasons.
EFL CUP DREAMS?
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A mediocre and disappointing Premier League campaign sees us secure just 2 wins, 3 draws in the first 9 league matches of the 2017.
But a phenomenal EFL Cup Semi Final Second Leg turn around vs Tottenham have send us into the EFL Cup Final against CHELSEA.
The perennial title contenders are once again near the top this season and will no doubt be an incredibly challenge at Wembley Stadium. We played a phenomenal match against Chelsea at home a month ago and we will need a repeat performance if we're going to raise a trophy. This is our only chance at reaching European football next season as we have virtually no chance of reaching 7th place.
Let's Go!
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A mediocre and disappointing Premier League campaign sees us secure just 2 wins, 3 draws in the first 9 league matches of the 2017.
But a phenomenal EFL Cup Semi Final Second Leg turn around vs Tottenham have send us into the EFL Cup Final against CHELSEA.
The perennial title contenders are once again near the top this season and will no doubt be an incredibly challenge at Wembley Stadium. We played a phenomenal match against Chelsea at home a month ago and we will need a repeat performance if we're going to raise a trophy. This is our only chance at reaching European football next season as we have virtually no chance of reaching 7th place.
Let's Go!
LOL. Well played Football Manager... Well played..
Literally two days before the EFL Cup Final..
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My 3.5-star starting Goalkeeper, Gerardo Diaz, 28 apps, 31 allowed, 3 pom, 6.97 rating and my 3.5-star right fullback, Gwendal Lafitte, 24 apps, 2 pom, 7.15 rating both get injuries. I lose a $10m Goalkeeper and $20m right fullback on the eve of the Cup. Un-Freaking-Believable.
These two players have literally NEVER been injured since I acquired them both two summers ago and they both get shot up in the same practice right before one of the biggest matches in Crystal Palace history.
Literally two days before the EFL Cup Final..
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My 3.5-star starting Goalkeeper, Gerardo Diaz, 28 apps, 31 allowed, 3 pom, 6.97 rating and my 3.5-star right fullback, Gwendal Lafitte, 24 apps, 2 pom, 7.15 rating both get injuries. I lose a $10m Goalkeeper and $20m right fullback on the eve of the Cup. Un-Freaking-Believable.
These two players have literally NEVER been injured since I acquired them both two summers ago and they both get shot up in the same practice right before one of the biggest matches in Crystal Palace history.
WEMBLEY
I'm pulling every single trick I have in my arsenal to get my boys to fire today! I usually play down our chances and praise my opponents but when I want a big win in a big match, I play up our chances and instill confidence!
Tactics
View attachment 100896
I'm using a variation of my normal tactic. This one is more defensive with my fullbacks both set for defensive roles and a 'Defensive' mentality set with a 'Structured' team shape.
I did get some good news as I found out that one of Chelsea's best players, Fred Molenaar, a $41m striker with 18 goals in 17 apps, 7.82 rating this season, would miss the match due to injury. But they are loaded with talent so this will not be easy by any stretch of the imagination.
LETS GET ON WITH THE MATCH
10th minute - Chelsea win the ball in the center of the pitch and methodically work the ball up the left flank, they swing it around the edge of the penalty area to right fullback Lukas Capek, who dribbles it to the end line before crossing to the penalty spot where striker Mauro Matos receives it and send a shot at the goal, SAVED by Bernardo, the backup goalkeeper for Palace! The Peruvian international, in just his 5th first team appearance of the season parries it wide of the goal. Chelsea are looking to pile on the pressure early!
11th minute - Blues midfielder William Jefford sends an in-swinging corner kick into the penalty area where it's cleared by Alessandro Ricci, but only out so far to Augustin Ferreira, Chelsea's $54m left winger. Ferreira, dribbles towards the penalty area and is taken down by Eagles on-loan playmaker Miki Roque. A free kick for Chelsea, 20m away from goal. Ferreira will take the free kick, dumps it into the penalty area and it's cleared away by Rory Mitchell for another Chelsea corner.
12th minute - Ferreira will take the corner left of goal, it's cleared by scrappy ball winning midfielder Paul Mason, but only back to Ferreira. Ferreira takes on Mason and blows right past him and explodes into the penalty area. He slides the ball cooly to Jeffords, who is 10 meters center of goal and has Bernardo at his mercy, but the one-time effort goes narrowly left of goal. Chelsea miss a golden opportunity, but they are looking good for their money today.
38th minute - With hard work and perseverance Crystal Palace have done well to limit Chelsea's chances up until this point, but here are the Blues again as they win another corner. It's Ferreira, who sends it into the area, cleared out by Mason back to Ferreira. Ferreira composes himself and slides another pass into the danger zone, and it's an on-rushing Nebosja Leskov who is on the receiving end and he launches a strike past the diving Bernardo! The Serbian midfielder is not known for his goal scoring prowess but he was brilliant with this chance and Chelsea have broken through. They look to be on their way to yet another trophy! Chelsea 1 - Palace 0.
It's half time and Chelsea have been much the best. Can Crystal Palace pull off one of the most unlikely upsets in EFL Cup history?
50th minute - A rare opportunity for Palace! A corner kick and it'll be Roque to take. Sent into the penalty area and cleared away by a Chelsea defender, but only back to Roque, who send in a second ball, cleared away again. 25 meters from goal, Roque battles Leskov for the ball and wins it, he lays it off to his right to Cristian Barrientos. The Chilean winger for Palace takes on a Chelsea defender and BEATS HIM, he slips a pass into Mason who shoots at goal, SAVED by Chelsea keeper Darragh Heary, but the ball rests on the goal line! Blues defender Chris Miller comes in to clear, but OH MY! Miller puts it into his own net! It's an own goal and Palace have their life line!!
64th minute - Palace make their first substitute. Che Nunnelly is on for Palace legend Andrei Ivan. Ivan has a taste for these big matches but at 33 years old, the Romanian's best may be behind him. Perhaps Nunnelly can offer something different in the left attacking midfielder spot.
68th minute - Chelsea seem a bit rattle from that shocking own goal and now here it's Palace on the move again! It's Roque, who swings it wide to Barrientos. Barrientos picks out a thew ball to Jaume Pascual. Pascual, the Bayern Munich loanee has some space in the right side of the penalty area, he dribbles towards the end line and cross it far post, it's the substitute Nunnelly!!!He taps it into an empty net, Heary has no chance!
75th minute - Palace have switched to a more possession style of play. They are playing with confidence and Chelsea are just chasing the ball!
90th minute - The fourth official has put up the number. There's only two minutes of stoppage time! Palace have not made any substitutes. The supporters at the far end Wembley are in full voice! They could be on the verge of making history!
92nd minute - Roque chases a ball towards the corner flag but cannot catch up with it. It goes out for a free kick for Chelsea, but there isn't much time remaining. Stephen Martin checks his watch, AND BLOWS HIS WHISTLE! IT'S OVER! CRYSTAL PALACE HAVE PULLED OFF A CUP WIN FOR THE AGES!
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I'm pulling every single trick I have in my arsenal to get my boys to fire today! I usually play down our chances and praise my opponents but when I want a big win in a big match, I play up our chances and instill confidence!
Tactics
View attachment 100896
I'm using a variation of my normal tactic. This one is more defensive with my fullbacks both set for defensive roles and a 'Defensive' mentality set with a 'Structured' team shape.
I did get some good news as I found out that one of Chelsea's best players, Fred Molenaar, a $41m striker with 18 goals in 17 apps, 7.82 rating this season, would miss the match due to injury. But they are loaded with talent so this will not be easy by any stretch of the imagination.
LETS GET ON WITH THE MATCH
10th minute - Chelsea win the ball in the center of the pitch and methodically work the ball up the left flank, they swing it around the edge of the penalty area to right fullback Lukas Capek, who dribbles it to the end line before crossing to the penalty spot where striker Mauro Matos receives it and send a shot at the goal, SAVED by Bernardo, the backup goalkeeper for Palace! The Peruvian international, in just his 5th first team appearance of the season parries it wide of the goal. Chelsea are looking to pile on the pressure early!
11th minute - Blues midfielder William Jefford sends an in-swinging corner kick into the penalty area where it's cleared by Alessandro Ricci, but only out so far to Augustin Ferreira, Chelsea's $54m left winger. Ferreira, dribbles towards the penalty area and is taken down by Eagles on-loan playmaker Miki Roque. A free kick for Chelsea, 20m away from goal. Ferreira will take the free kick, dumps it into the penalty area and it's cleared away by Rory Mitchell for another Chelsea corner.
12th minute - Ferreira will take the corner left of goal, it's cleared by scrappy ball winning midfielder Paul Mason, but only back to Ferreira. Ferreira takes on Mason and blows right past him and explodes into the penalty area. He slides the ball cooly to Jeffords, who is 10 meters center of goal and has Bernardo at his mercy, but the one-time effort goes narrowly left of goal. Chelsea miss a golden opportunity, but they are looking good for their money today.
38th minute - With hard work and perseverance Crystal Palace have done well to limit Chelsea's chances up until this point, but here are the Blues again as they win another corner. It's Ferreira, who sends it into the area, cleared out by Mason back to Ferreira. Ferreira composes himself and slides another pass into the danger zone, and it's an on-rushing Nebosja Leskov who is on the receiving end and he launches a strike past the diving Bernardo! The Serbian midfielder is not known for his goal scoring prowess but he was brilliant with this chance and Chelsea have broken through. They look to be on their way to yet another trophy! Chelsea 1 - Palace 0.
It's half time and Chelsea have been much the best. Can Crystal Palace pull off one of the most unlikely upsets in EFL Cup history?
50th minute - A rare opportunity for Palace! A corner kick and it'll be Roque to take. Sent into the penalty area and cleared away by a Chelsea defender, but only back to Roque, who send in a second ball, cleared away again. 25 meters from goal, Roque battles Leskov for the ball and wins it, he lays it off to his right to Cristian Barrientos. The Chilean winger for Palace takes on a Chelsea defender and BEATS HIM, he slips a pass into Mason who shoots at goal, SAVED by Chelsea keeper Darragh Heary, but the ball rests on the goal line! Blues defender Chris Miller comes in to clear, but OH MY! Miller puts it into his own net! It's an own goal and Palace have their life line!!
64th minute - Palace make their first substitute. Che Nunnelly is on for Palace legend Andrei Ivan. Ivan has a taste for these big matches but at 33 years old, the Romanian's best may be behind him. Perhaps Nunnelly can offer something different in the left attacking midfielder spot.
68th minute - Chelsea seem a bit rattle from that shocking own goal and now here it's Palace on the move again! It's Roque, who swings it wide to Barrientos. Barrientos picks out a thew ball to Jaume Pascual. Pascual, the Bayern Munich loanee has some space in the right side of the penalty area, he dribbles towards the end line and cross it far post, it's the substitute Nunnelly!!!He taps it into an empty net, Heary has no chance!
75th minute - Palace have switched to a more possession style of play. They are playing with confidence and Chelsea are just chasing the ball!
90th minute - The fourth official has put up the number. There's only two minutes of stoppage time! Palace have not made any substitutes. The supporters at the far end Wembley are in full voice! They could be on the verge of making history!
92nd minute - Roque chases a ball towards the corner flag but cannot catch up with it. It goes out for a free kick for Chelsea, but there isn't much time remaining. Stephen Martin checks his watch, AND BLOWS HIS WHISTLE! IT'S OVER! CRYSTAL PALACE HAVE PULLED OFF A CUP WIN FOR THE AGES!
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Brane_Orsou
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Congrats mate!
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We finished the season like we started it. Flat. A slight dip from last season's results but I'll take this and an EFL Cup trophy any day!
We have a huge off season ahead with a nice large $70m transfer kitty to work with. Time to bring in some studs!
We finished the season like we started it. Flat. A slight dip from last season's results but I'll take this and an EFL Cup trophy any day!
We have a huge off season ahead with a nice large $70m transfer kitty to work with. Time to bring in some studs!
SUMMER 2030
There were only two squad players that left the team this summer.
DL Raul Rego left for $6.5m to Hamburg, I had brought him in my first January transfer window for $3.7m when I first arrived at Palace a couple seasons back. He had fallen to a rotational role this past year and became disgruntled Glad to turn a profit on him.MC Robin Huser, $2.4m to Real Zaragoza. Huser was another one I brought in during that first window, he has aged quite a bit the last couple seasons and wasn't much use for me last year and I loaned him to Zaragoza, they made it permanent.
TRANSFERS IN
DC Miguel Trejo, $34m from Tigres (Mexico)
View attachment 100450
My first wonderkid! This is the fourth player in three summer transfers windows that I've brought in from Mexico, and only one of those previous three has been disappointing so hopefully this one works out as well. Just 20 years old, he becomes first choice central defender for the squad with potential to grow. Central defense wasn't a key need for me, but I'm happy to upgrade the position, even if it's slightly.
MC Klaas Hoogervorst, $19.5m from Sevilla.
View attachment 100449
Top priority this off season was upgrading my Ball Winning Midfielder horse. Spending this much money, I would have really liked to have found a younger player, but Hoogervorst will have to do. The Dutch international is a significant upgrade over my second central midfielder and really strengthens us in an area that my tactics require. Love how my team shapes up after this signing.
ST David Bartusiak, $2.4m from Stoke.
View attachment 100448
How on earth.... did I get this guy for $2.4 million from Stoke? I still can't figure it out. All season long I had this guy as one of my top targets, and there were no other suitors for this guy at $2.4m?!?
38 matches, 14 goals, 8 asts, 4 pom, 7.04 for a Stoke City squad that got demoted. How is no one else interested? If he can do that well with a bad Stoke team, he should do amazing with quality service from my midfielders.
And brought back in on loan once again.............. Don't make fun of me... Please.....
AMC Miki Roque, on loan from Barcelona for $10 million!
View attachment 100447
Yes, I paid $10 million dollars for the services of ONE YEAR of this player. That is $1.5 million per month! I had gotten him for $4.4 million last year, but Barcelona were eyeing him for potential first team action and I had to up the ante. I did have a $45 million offer accepted, but Roque did not want to come here permanently. Maybe we can make a Champions League push and change his mind this year.
Miki ran my midfield last year and I just wasn't happy with the other options out there. I could have spent $60m-$70m on Chelsea's very nice, but aging attacking midfielder, but decided against it.
Other News
- We drew AFC Botosani from the Romanian First League in the Third Qualifying Round of the EURO Cup.. Soft opponent, we better not screw it up!
- The board decided on their own to make a 13k seat expansion to the grounds, which will be complete in April 2031. Cannot wait! Selhurst Park will then be at 39,445 capacity!! We will temporarily play in The Boleyn Ground (35,402) until then.
- Our Youth Facilities are being expanded, and we also were promoted to Category 1 Youth Level. My newgens to date have been rather underwhelming and disappointing. A couple players that could be good Premier League players in a few years, but no real studs in 3 cracks at it.
- I negotiated a contract extension. $65,000/wk thru June 2034. I previously earned $50k/week. I didn't really get bother much by other teams last season, probably due to my mediocre league form.
Alright, time to play some matches!
There were only two squad players that left the team this summer.
DL Raul Rego left for $6.5m to Hamburg, I had brought him in my first January transfer window for $3.7m when I first arrived at Palace a couple seasons back. He had fallen to a rotational role this past year and became disgruntled Glad to turn a profit on him.MC Robin Huser, $2.4m to Real Zaragoza. Huser was another one I brought in during that first window, he has aged quite a bit the last couple seasons and wasn't much use for me last year and I loaned him to Zaragoza, they made it permanent.
TRANSFERS IN
DC Miguel Trejo, $34m from Tigres (Mexico)
View attachment 100450
My first wonderkid! This is the fourth player in three summer transfers windows that I've brought in from Mexico, and only one of those previous three has been disappointing so hopefully this one works out as well. Just 20 years old, he becomes first choice central defender for the squad with potential to grow. Central defense wasn't a key need for me, but I'm happy to upgrade the position, even if it's slightly.
MC Klaas Hoogervorst, $19.5m from Sevilla.
View attachment 100449
Top priority this off season was upgrading my Ball Winning Midfielder horse. Spending this much money, I would have really liked to have found a younger player, but Hoogervorst will have to do. The Dutch international is a significant upgrade over my second central midfielder and really strengthens us in an area that my tactics require. Love how my team shapes up after this signing.
ST David Bartusiak, $2.4m from Stoke.
View attachment 100448
How on earth.... did I get this guy for $2.4 million from Stoke? I still can't figure it out. All season long I had this guy as one of my top targets, and there were no other suitors for this guy at $2.4m?!?
38 matches, 14 goals, 8 asts, 4 pom, 7.04 for a Stoke City squad that got demoted. How is no one else interested? If he can do that well with a bad Stoke team, he should do amazing with quality service from my midfielders.
And brought back in on loan once again.............. Don't make fun of me... Please.....
AMC Miki Roque, on loan from Barcelona for $10 million!
View attachment 100447
Yes, I paid $10 million dollars for the services of ONE YEAR of this player. That is $1.5 million per month! I had gotten him for $4.4 million last year, but Barcelona were eyeing him for potential first team action and I had to up the ante. I did have a $45 million offer accepted, but Roque did not want to come here permanently. Maybe we can make a Champions League push and change his mind this year.
Miki ran my midfield last year and I just wasn't happy with the other options out there. I could have spent $60m-$70m on Chelsea's very nice, but aging attacking midfielder, but decided against it.
Other News
- We drew AFC Botosani from the Romanian First League in the Third Qualifying Round of the EURO Cup.. Soft opponent, we better not screw it up!
- The board decided on their own to make a 13k seat expansion to the grounds, which will be complete in April 2031. Cannot wait! Selhurst Park will then be at 39,445 capacity!! We will temporarily play in The Boleyn Ground (35,402) until then.
- Our Youth Facilities are being expanded, and we also were promoted to Category 1 Youth Level. My newgens to date have been rather underwhelming and disappointing. A couple players that could be good Premier League players in a few years, but no real studs in 3 cracks at it.
- I negotiated a contract extension. $65,000/wk thru June 2034. I previously earned $50k/week. I didn't really get bother much by other teams last season, probably due to my mediocre league form.
Alright, time to play some matches!
EURO CUP - THIRD QUALIFYING ROUND
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We steamrolled the opposition 7-0 on aggregate in my European debut. Not much to say about it, we were just superior. They were no better than a mid-table Sky Bet League One side.
We drew BATE Borisov in the upcoming playoff to reach the Group Stage. BATE have won the Belarusian Highest League every season of my save so far, extending their title run to 24 consecutive seasons.
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We steamrolled the opposition 7-0 on aggregate in my European debut. Not much to say about it, we were just superior. They were no better than a mid-table Sky Bet League One side.
We drew BATE Borisov in the upcoming playoff to reach the Group Stage. BATE have won the Belarusian Highest League every season of my save so far, extending their title run to 24 consecutive seasons.
EURO CUP - PLAYOFF
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BATE showed little resistance. A nice 3-0 aggregate win for the good guys and a nice $2.91m payday for reaching the Group Stage!
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BATE showed little resistance. A nice 3-0 aggregate win for the good guys and a nice $2.91m payday for reaching the Group Stage!
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EURO CUP - Group Stage Match One
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Without a doubt our biggest competition in the Group Stage, Fiorentina finished 5th in the Serie A last season but my boys were ready to go with a clinical performance. Our new signing David Bartusiak notched a hat trick. Again, just $2.4m for this guy this past summer. He's currently valued at $13m.
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Without a doubt our biggest competition in the Group Stage, Fiorentina finished 5th in the Serie A last season but my boys were ready to go with a clinical performance. Our new signing David Bartusiak notched a hat trick. Again, just $2.4m for this guy this past summer. He's currently valued at $13m.
Good Half - January 2031
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Alright, this is more like it! We successfully navigate our EURO Cup group with ease, after the media projected it as one of the tougher groups.
We also juggled the tight schedule around both competitions to have some of our best Premier League success to date! Our chances of reaching the Champions League are quite small as the Top 4 have kicked away somewhat from the rest of the pack. Maybe we can pull off a shock EURO Cup Title?
There could be some turnover in the January window. Although, I do not have much funds to make a huge upgrade, I do have players that are getting targeted by other clubs and some have become unhappy. They will likely be sold and replaced.
Sammuthegreat
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Just read this. Awesome stuff. Would be interested to see if you get poached by a top club, but then the "big 6" seem to have stayed in their traditional top 6 positions thus far so I guess they're all reasonably content with their managers...