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This isn't a year where the ASEAN Cup or the Asian Cup is being contested, so Rock will be available for the full season for Real Madrid.
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Aug 7, 2014 18:31
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habeasdorkus posted:This isn't a year where the ASEAN Cup or the Asian Cup is being contested, so Rock will be available for the full season for Real Madrid. Nuts, going back to edit my prediction then.
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Aug 7, 2014 19:11
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31 for the Bastard, 22 for the not-Bastard, +9 difference
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Aug 7, 2014 21:19
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Rocky: 25, Thiago: 21 Rocky +4
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Aug 7, 2014 21:34
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Does anyone know Wrexham's record when red carded? I lost count, but I think it's something like 8-1-1 with a handful of shorthanded goals.
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Aug 7, 2014 22:15
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Thiago 30, Rocky 20, Thiago +10
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Aug 7, 2014 23:19
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25 for Rocky, 19 for Thiago, Rocky +6
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Aug 8, 2014 00:24
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Can we get a rundown of Wrexham's current tactics? Not formations, but player roles/duties, and team instructions.
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Aug 8, 2014 01:21
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I'll put it in the next chapter. edit: Also, this thing is now 200,000 words shy of War and Peace. I'm tempted to throw in a whole chapter about nothing but hunting in the Russian countryside. habeasdorkus fucked around with this message at 16:38 on Aug 8, 2014 |
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Aug 8, 2014 14:36
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Sounds like a great team building exercise to me
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Aug 8, 2014 17:01
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We're 40k words past Middlemarch, and nearly 100k past Moby Dick.  I didn't realize it'd quite gotten so long.
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Aug 8, 2014 18:52
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habeasdorkus posted:We're 40k words past Middlemarch, and nearly 100k past Moby Dick. It still probably isn't as many as that 4 year long LP for War in the Pacific. http://lparchive.org/War-in-the-Pacific/ Although your LP does have more words per update so that should balance things out.
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Aug 8, 2014 19:06
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I'm putting down Thiago for 22 and Bastable for 18 and hence +4 to Thiago
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Aug 8, 2014 20:25
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Dreamsicle posted:It still probably isn't as many as that 4 year long LP for War in the Pacific. http://lparchive.org/War-in-the-Pacific/ Grey Hunter's War in the Pacific LP had 1320 updates. That's almost 9 times the number of updates to this LP. That's not a knock on this LP, which got me to buy FM 14, it's a testament to how insane Grey's WitP LP was. He updated the war in the pacific on a day by day basis for four years. Bastable 26 Thiago 14 Bastable +12
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Aug 8, 2014 21:36
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Not My Leg posted:Grey Hunter's War in the Pacific LP had 1320 updates. That's almost 9 times the number of updates to this LP. That's not a knock on this LP, which got me to buy FM 14, it's a testament to how insane Grey's WitP LP was. He updated the war in the pacific on a day by day basis for four years. Didn't Grey also run other LPs while he was doing the WitP LP and getting married? The man is clearly either insane or some sort of machine.
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Aug 8, 2014 22:25
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Wow, now I feel like a poser. Daily updates over 4 years is truly impressive. This one will likely run through either the 2026 or 2030 World Cup (I want to win it). Also, I'm sure if I went back to the prior updates I'd be editing like a fiend to fix various awkward phrases, improve the phrases, and try to avoid repetition. Next update is played and mostly written, but I've got friends and beer in my immediate future. I'll try to have it and perhaps the next chapter up tomorrow.
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Aug 8, 2014 23:00
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If you retire in 2026, you better beat Paisley's Champions League record. 
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Aug 8, 2014 23:38
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After the Bastard suffers a nasty injury he scores 14 goals Thiago scores 23 goals. The differential ends up being 9 goals
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Aug 9, 2014 01:45
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I'm gonna go Bastard 22 and Thiago 20 so Bastard +2
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Aug 9, 2014 01:53
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Pfft, Moby Dick ain't got nothing on your quest to win a world championship for the USA.
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Aug 9, 2014 04:26
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Trundel posted:Pfft, Moby Dick ain't got nothing on your quest to win a world championship for the USA. And to be the greatest manager ever or greatest manager to manage less than 15 years. Dreamsicle fucked around with this message at 05:22 on Aug 10, 2014 |
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Aug 9, 2014 04:35
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it's over all competitions right? Real should go fairly deep in both the Champions League and the Spanish Cup. Wrexham will probably get knoked out of the Carling Cup around the 4th round (this always happens to me, can never win that in my games). Also Rocky will probably be the focal point in Madrid's attack this season. Tis a tough one though. Rocky: 37, Thiago: 24 Rocky +13
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Aug 11, 2014 20:01
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Chapter the Third: The Welsh steamroller. September 1, 2023-October 1, 2023 We've got a chance to win our second trophy of the year in the Super Cup. We've also got a tricky match against Chelsea right after the international break. During that international break we'll be playing against Germany in Germany, which will be the sternest test yet faced by the USMNT under my leadership. Beyond that, though, things look downright easy.  Maybe I spoke too soon. We haven't beaten Norwich in over two years, and we've only won one of our last six matches against them. While I shouldn't be dreading a trip to the Canaries at this point in our development as a club the same was true each of the last three years when they repeatedly took four points from us in the EPL. vs Internazionale, September 1, 2023 Super Cup  We're at the Olimpico in Turin, putting this match essentially in our Milanese opponent's back yard. Inter has one shining star in midfielder Mate Rados, but beyond him don't have anyone who would realistically get a lot of playing time on our squad. Thus I promulgate a single commandment. Bring me that trophy! Starting Formation: 4-2-3-1 Control Starting 11: Kovacevic, Reed, Laux, Hammatt, Loseille, Morvan, Bailey (c), Parr, Shirra, Taborda, Thiago. Subs: Fitzgerald, Quiboulaz, Vidal, Mair, Petts, Argenti, Stringel. We take advantage of our ability to recycle possession after corner kicks when Hammatt redirects a flick on from Parr in the eighth minute. It's a pretty piece of interplay from our squad, and we continue our fine form in every aspect of play but our finishing throughout the half. Just before it ends, however, we're caught napping by Rados and it's all even after forty-five. His name comes up over and over again in the second half, we can't prevent him from getting free and he harries our defense until I finally assign Bailey to stick by his side for the remainder of the match. That leads to more chances from other Inter players, but they aren't half the players that Rados is and those go for naught. So when Shahed Parr scores an all time golazo in the 68th minute it restores the lead. It's a monstrous drive hit from roughly 70 yards away, and it's the longest range goal I've ever seen in Football Manager. We're on the offensive again two minutes later. Parr cracks the woodwork from range and Thiago shows great instinct to pounce on the rebound to give us an insurmountable advantage heading into the final 20 minutes. Inter slump, defeated, and we leave Italy with the Super Cup. Man of the Match: Ed Hammatt   Wrexham 3-1 Inter  Sure it's just about the mildest double you can do, but it does keep us on track to win every competition we enter. Next up, the League Cup and the Club World Cup! Let's do the Septuple!  We've hit the point where we have too many players to register our entire senior team in the Champions League. Loanee Vidal, free transfer Gabbianelli, and youngster Ikeda all are left off the squad that will travel the continent.  This isn't because he's buried on our bench. I've been giving him chances to prove himself, he's played in three of our five matches thus far, but he's returned mediocre performances.  Not the way I'd advise trying to get yourself more playing time, kid.  O'Hanlon has me at the top of his “Favored Personnel” list, and I don't especially want to upset a guy who's been with us for five years and can fill a “home grown player” spot in the Champions League. I'll terminate the Vidal loan as he's surplus to requirements and I don't want to develop a player for one of our continental rivals. O'Hanlon is more concerned about Quiboulaz taking his playing time, as he should be, but with four centerbacks there's enough playing time for everyone.  This does free up some more wages, and hopefully will make the players happier. The media are going to have a field day with it, though, and I'm sure PSG isn't happy with my change of plans.  They reopened the Wrexham Taco Bell, and made it a combination Taco Bell/Pizza Hut/KFC. I foresee further gastrointestinal problems.  I'm trying to think of where the most appropriate place to stay would be given that we're playing in in Düsseldorf and Athens. While I'm equivocating over Geneva or Vienna, US Soccer books us at a Holiday Inn.  Dangit Erlic, you're already in my first team, and you're my captain to boot. You're supposed to tell all the kids to kick on, not freak out the other fullbacks. At Germany, September 8, 2023 International Friendly  When we beat Mexico we were playing on our own home turf. We're facing die Mannschaft in Germany, and the advantage will be all theirs. I've also left some of our better players home because they needed rest, and of course Bobby Padilla is exiled from the squad. Even a draw here will be something we can take pride in and that USMNT supporters can gush about while fans from other nations mutter about how it's only a friendly. Starting Formation: 4-5-1 Counter Starting 11: Toninho, Parsons, Brown, Latham, Erlic (c), Woods, Hartman, Ramos, Burman, Lenz, Carroll. Subs: Gomez, Solis, Bruno, Needham, Romaneiro, Lang, Barrett, Hughes, Enriquez, Perez, Mancini. A swarming counterattack and overlapping runs by Parsons and Burman put us ahead after 4 minutes, and the packed stadium makes their disappointment known. That same combination helps create a second goal five minutes later and silences the German crowd. Germany pressure us steadily for the next 30 minutes, but we get two more good chances. One of them goes off the crossbar, and I hope we won't regret it. We enter the locker room with a 2-0 lead, and it could easily be 4-0. Germany play much better after the break, no surprise there, but it's still 2-0 after 70 minutes and an exquisite Toninho save. They don't threaten again thanks to disciplined defending, and we've just beaten Germany in Germany. Start writing our names on the 2026 World Cup. Man of the Match: Brian Burman   Germany 0-2 USMNT  He just keeps impressing.  Ganbatte, Ryuta!  Paul Williams also led them to victory over South Africa a day before the Germany match. We've got several teen prospects with the senior team right now, making these wins even more impressive. At Greece, September 12, 2023 International Friendly  I haven't fully come to terms with the fact that we shocked Germany. It doesn't matter what happens in this game, this European trip was a huge success. Starting Formation: 4-5-1 Counter Starting 11: Toninho, Parsons, Brown, Needham, Bruno, Romaneiro, Woods (c), Ramos, Burman, Lenz, Carroll. Subs: Solis, Gomez, Erlic, Latham, Lang, Hartman, Hughes, Barrett, Enriquez, Perez, Mancini. Well, that's soccer for you. We thoroughly outplayed Greece, and they're the ones taking a 1-0 victory. It's the national team's first loss in 11 months, and given that we also beat the Germans on this tour I'm perfectly willing to commiserate with them over some bad luck that kept us from a deserved win.   Greece 1-0 USMNT  Next up are Mexico and Costa Rica. Our status as World Cup hosts means we won't be involved in CONCACAF qualification over the next couple years, so I'm going to continue to try and schedule one difficult and one midlevel opponent during our international periods.  We might not have budged in the rankings, but we sure caused Germany a tumble. They go from 6th to 13th.   I love wingbacks. I'm tempted to start playing three at the back and push Reed and Loseille up to a more advanced position. That's filed away for now, but one day I might run out a 3-4-3 where we have Aarts, Stringel, and Thiago on the pitch at once and Loseille/Mujkic and Reed as the poor bastards who have to run 10+ miles and give us width.   From literally unknown to being signed by a favorite to lift the Champions League trophy and getting his first national cap and goal, Thiago has had a busy couple months. Also, I'm seeing shades of Diego Costa in a brilliant 25 year old striker deciding to play for the country where his professional club was rather than Brazil.  Two of the clubs with the four best odds of winning the tournament are in the same group stage along with better than average third and fourth seeds. Why does this seem like the fix is in? If anyone sees Gazprom execs talking with sheiks at the other matches call Interpol.  We've started a batch of clones for Mujkic so we can harvest a fresh spinal cord, but with current 2023 technology we've still got to wait for them to reach at least 18 years old before we can use them. We can put a man on the moon, but we can't replace vital bodily systems with illegally harvested clone duplicates... what is this world coming to? vs Chelsea, September 16, 2023 Premier League  Chelsea are decidedly on the outside looking in at the moment. They've suffered some defections and the lack of Champions League play means that they aren't able to make big signings the way they used to. They still have some great players, though, and one of those is our former centerback Chris Todd. Starting Formation: 4-5-1 Control Starting 11: Kovacevic, Quiboulaz, Laux, Hammatt, Taffarel, Morvan, Bailey (c), Collett, Stringel, Gabbianelli, Thiago. Subs: Fitzgerald, Reed, O'Hanlon, Petts, Allan, Ikeda, Argenti. We seize advantage after fifteen minutes when Stringel catches the Chelsea centerback not named Todd leaning the wrong way on the attack and is able to slip a ball to Thiago. Stringel does it again seven minutes later, this time to Todd who watches the ball whir past on it's way to the waiting boot of Collett. Hammatt shows that our defenders too can make boneheaded mistakes by giving Chelsea an easy goal when he misplays a throw in deep in our own area. Not to worry, wonderkid Stringel slips past the Chelsea back line and latches onto a Bailey through ball in the second half to reclaim the two goal lead. We need it. Chelsea's Antonio Vicini is proving you should never go in against a Sicilian when the game is on the line, and is singlehandedly responsible for all Chelsea offense on the day, making it 3-2 in the 73rd minute. It's enough to win him man of the match, but not to win Chelsea any points.   Wrexham 3-2 Chelsea   These are minor injuries, but given that we play twice a week Morvan and Stringel could each miss four matches.  The Racecourse Ground can't be expanded beyond it's current 28,000 seats. That makes it the fifth smallest venue in the Premier League, and less than 1/3rd the number that Manchester United can pack into New Old Trafford. We're going to have to be a very expensive ticket to make up the difference between us and the big clubs when it comes to gate earnings. vs Rubin Kazan, September 19, 2023 Champions League, Group D  Rubin Kazan have won five of the last ten Russian Prem'er Liga seasons, but never advanced out of the group stage of the Champions League. They do have a couple players who could find some playing time in our squad, the best of which is a defensive midfielder named Garrinchinha, a naturalized Russian citizen. As for the crowd, there's 1,047 unsold tickets. I'm blaming this on the Russian fans, because I'm sure the Wrexham faithful wouldn't leave seats open for Champions League matches. Starting Formation: 4-2-3-1 Control Starting 11: Kovacevic, Reed (c), O'Hanlon, Hammatt, Loseille, Mair, Shirra, Argenti, Rouissi, Taborda, Aarts. Subs: Fitzgerald, Cirjak, Laux, Bailey, Petts, Parr, Thiago. I grow frustrated as the clock ticks on and we remain unable to work the ball into dangerous areas. That frustration turns to outrage when O'Hanlon puts in an own goal after a rocket off the post by Rubin and then gets himself carded minutes later. He looks on the brink of meltdown, which forces me to take him out for the cooler headed Laux at halftime. Things thankfully improve, starting with Aarts getting free and equalizing in the 54th minute. He scores the go ahead goal 15 minutes later. The Ruskies get a shot away in the 85th minute that flies over Kovacevic's outstretched hands and judders the crossbar, making it very clear that the game is not over. At least, not until Aarts tires of toying with his opposition and drops the insurance goal in by posterizing the Rubin keeper and thwacking the ball downwards and across the goal line. It was a harder match than I'd have liked, but the cliché doesn't lie- a win is a win. I'm especially happy to see Aarts score when it matters, if he and Stringel continue their early season form it won't matter whether Thiago is a bust. Man of the Match: Bram Aarts   Wrexham 3-1 Rubin  Hey Taff and Damgaard, you see how the rest of the team loves me? My pep talks are the stuff of legend. Perhaps you should have waited a couple months before piping up to the media about how I didn't know what I was doing.  Phew. He picked that up in the first half of the match and I would have subbed him out but for having to remove O'Hanlon after the own goal and carding.  Can't have everything, I suppose. Cirjak's Marking is pretty good, but not world class. I put up with it due to his other talents. At Blackburn Rovers, September 23, 2023 Premier League  I'm torn about who to play in this match. We have the League Cup in two days and I'll be damned if we're losing to Norwich again. But we're also off to a hot start in the Premier League and I don't want to risk that either. On the third hand, our squad is filled with players of roughly the same level of ability but different strengths and weaknesses... our starting 11 features so much flux because I'm both trying to maintain everyone's fitness and because the choice of Morvan or Petts is apples to oranges and Collett, Argenti, or Parr is apples to apples. Starting Formation: 4-2-3-1 Control Starting 11: Fitzgerald, Cirjak, Laux, Quiboulaz, Taffarel, Bailey, Petts, Parr, Allan, Mujkic (c), Thiago. Subs: Kovacevic, Reed, O'Hanlon, Mair, Shirra, Collett, Gabbianelli. I'm getting used to hearing “Great play until the finish by Thiago!” from the announcers. We don't need him to take all three points, though. Petts volleys home a pass from Cirjak for the lead. Mujkic scores his fiftieth league goal for the Red Dragons two minutes later on a trademark run up the flank that leaves his marker in the dust and gasping for breath. Blackburn makes it interesting with a goal early in the second half, and there's yellow cards galore for both sides with 10 minutes left, but our defense doesn't allow anything more. Man of the Match: Tonci Cirjak.   Blackburn 1-2 Wrexham  I don't expect us to set the all time record for consecutive wins for football as a whole, but Arsenal's modern day Premier League record of 14 is in sight.  We also haven't lost since the FA Cup semi last April. This run is fantastic, and I'm happy with the outcomes, but complacency will become an issue. We're a club with a professional mindset across our squad, but even the most professional clubs can fall victim to overconfidence.  Bailey has been heavily featured in our squad both because I have a great deal of affinity for him and because he's got a certain mix of talents that make him our best choice as a box to box midfielder. Also, getting hulked out means that he's got the stamina to play the position in a way that Morvan and Petts do not.  Tosh has a new job already?! You'd think that his massive underperformance at Southampton would earn him more than a couple weeks on the unemployment line. But nope, he's already head coach of Norwich. Tactical Segue   I was asked to go into a little more detail about our tactics. The first thing to know is that the club has been built to utilize the 4-2-3-1 formation. That means lots of players suited to playing on the wing, lots of attacking midfielders who are comfortable in creative roles, and strikers who can lead the line and draw in defenders to open room for the wingers and attacking midfielders to operate in.  The primary change recently is that I've tried to make our base formation even more offensive-minded by setting our fullbacks to operate as Complete Wingbacks. Complete Wingbacks can only be set to an attacking role, they'll seek to charge upfield at the first opportunity and overlap with the wingers to cause havoc deep in the opposition's third. That means that they're prone to getting caught upfield when the other team wins possession and counter attacks, and our primary Centerback pairing of Hammatt and Laux are not yet quick or experienced enough to defend the huge amount of space those wingbacks leave open. Ideally the centerbacks will get quicker and we'll find a Neuer-esque sweeper keeper, which will allow us to press a higher line and dominate play even more. As is we impose our will on any club other than the six or seven best in the league, and the sacrifice we make in order to do that is giving them a couple breakaway chances a match.  I've also set up a 4-2-3-1 variant for counter-attacking play. There aren't many occasions where I want to use it, but being prepared to play a counter style when we have tough away games allows us to both show a slightly different look and actually be practiced at the counter when we need to use it. Along with having the fullbacks stay at home on defense, the central midfield pairing is more defensive with the left one set as a ball winning midfield destroyer and the deep-lying playmaker moved from a defensive to support role. The players are also ordered to not stray from their assignments in order to keep us from overreaching.  The 4-4-1-1 is boring, so while writing this tactical section I scrapped it for the new hotness. We've barely used this in the last two years, and it's too defensive a formation for me to feel like a genius for using. Win pretty or don't win at all.  That new hotness is the 3-4-3. It's more than a little offensively minded, and a stark contrast to our base 4-2-3-1. Rather than seeking to suffocate the opponent by maintaining possession and moving the ball along the outside of the penalty area in order to pull the defense out of shape it's designed to get the ball upfield quick to three forwards, using the wingbacks to create width and overwhelming the defense with five players attacking. Three centerbacks and a ball winning midfielder are assigned to win back possession as soon as possible so we can return to unleashing broadsides against the opposition. Note: I haven't had a chance to use it yet. It could turn out be a complete failure, but if so it will be an entertaining one. At Norwich City, September 26, 2023 League Cup, Fourth Round  If we have a bogey team, this is it. I'm running out a competitive squad, if this were our first team all season in the Prem I'd expect us to finish between 4th and 6th. Starting Formation: 4-2-3-1 Control Starting 11: Fitzgerald, Reed (c), O'Hanlon, Quiboulaz, Loseille, Mair, Shirra, Argenti, Rouissi, Taborda, Aarts. Subs: Kovacevic, Taffarel, Laux, Bailey, Collett, Ikeda, Gabbianelli. We score from a Taborda free kick in the sixth minute. That's followed by sustained pressure, but we tack on nothing more before Taborda has to go off injured in the 28th minute. Bram Aarts is getting into dangerous places, but not finishing the job, and has also been caught offside more than once. The two goal advantage is finally earned courtesy Loseille late in the second half, so naturally he's injured minutes later. Norwich are not pleased to be going down to us. Regardless of their mood, they can't do anything to stop us from thumping them. In the 90th minute Taffarel makes an overlapping run, passes to Gabbianelli in the area, Gabbi waits until the keeper has to come off his line to protect against the shot and pokes it over to Kais Rouissi, who finishes the exorcism. Norwich had one breakaway early, but that was their only shot on goal and they spent a piddling 6% of the game with possession in our third. Man of the Match: James Loseille   Norwich 0-3 Wrexham   We'll get by ok without them, I was worried that Taborda in particular would be a much worse injury given how early he went down.  Maybe after another 5 games where your players keep injuring mine.   What, £4k/wk isn't enough for someone who had 16 goals and 8 assists for the club last year? Argenti will probably cost more at the end of the season, but I don't like negotiating midyear and I want to make sure he can play consistently well after his boom and bust campaign a year back.  Perhaps I should stop leaving him off the USMNT.  They'll probably be playing a weakened squad, but considering there were still League One teams in the draw this has to be considered the worst possible matchup we could have gotten. Imagine Pattison's face if we win, though. vs West Bromwich Albion, September 30, 2023 Premier League  We've got a relegation contender vs. a club on a five month unbeaten streak. I wonder which way the odds are going. Fitzgerald is getting a third start in a row because Kovacevic stubbed a finger during practice. Starting Formation: 4-2-3-1 Control Starting 11: Fitzgerald, Cirjak, Laux, Hammatt, Taffarel, Bailey, Petts, Parr, Shirra, Mujkic (c), Thiago. Subs: Kovacevic, Quiboulaz, O'Hanlon, Morvan, Allan, Collett, Aarts. It's ugly for West Brom at the start, and they're lucky we don't take the lead until the third minute when Shahed Parr scores after Bailey coolly intercepts an Albion pass and finds him breaking for the goal. They recover from going down early by hitting us on the break before a half hour is up, but Thiago poaches a goal to take us into the half up one. We reassert control in the second half, taking a two goal lead after Mujkic and Petts combine to set up a Shirra tap in. West Brom doesn't threaten again, and the capacity crowd of 28,000 goes home happy. Man of the Match: Scott Shirra   Wrexham 3-1 West Brom  Not true. As I mentioned earlier the actual record is 14 straight by Arsenal. We've got them in our sights, though, with the potential record setter coming at home against Manchester City next month. USMNT  We beat Germany! Sure we lost to Greece, but who cares? We beat Germany! Wrexham  Counting our friendlies we're 18-1-0 on the season. Ignoring them we're 10-0-0. We're scoring goals, we're defending reasonably well, and we're pasting all comers. The next month will be harder as we have back to back to back matches with PSG in the Champions League and then Manchester City in the EPL and League Cup, but this team has done everything we could have asked of it so far. My biggest problem has been finding playing time for all of our stars. That means that we're due for a collapse, or at the very least a dip in form that leads to draws and gnashing of teeth.  
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Aug 13, 2014 20:45
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Chapter the Fourth: Put an asterisk on the whole shebang. October 1, 2023-November 1, 2023 We're due for a downturn. The only question is whether that happens before we get to the end of the month or when we're playing Manchester City twice in four days. I'd be happier about the whole thing if our good start had given us a bigger lead in the EPL and CL, instead we're one game into the Champions League and only two points up on Manchester United.  AJ_Impy won't be leaving his post without giving something back to the club. The one thing that hasn't improved during all the renovations of the Racecourse Grounds is the Corporate Facilities rating, which models fancy things like luxury suites and the accoutrements for wining and dining the rich and powerful. That rating is part of what determines your sponsorship income. You can only upgrade, so far as I know, with a new stadium.  He won a game more than I did, meaning this award makes more sense than the August one. Doesn't change the fact that the club is the only undefeated in the league, with the best goal differential, and we're winning few plaudits for it. A senior team member doesn't even pick up best young player this month, it goes instead to Cosimo De Blasio for a strong set of games at Leeds.  Our jersey sales have skyrocketed. We've got bandwagon fans across the planet at this point. Just compare with two years ago: quote:We're selling nearly three times as many jerseys in a month as we did for an entire season, and that was after we had already reached the Premier League. It's increased our total revenue to the point where we were just £1.5m in the red over the course of the month. At such a low burn rate we'll still have more than 50m quid in hand after the entire season ends. I'm glad we're a fan trust, in prior games I've had penurious owners who enjoyed lifting tens of millions of pounds straight from the budget to their wallet. With a fan trust that isn't an option, for all the joking we've done about embezzlement it's been more or less a non-issue.   Bailey's 29 years old, but I would love if he got capped. It would be a fitting reward for the guy who's been getting it done for us since day one, even if he's a PED scandal waiting to happen. At Shakhtar Donetsk, October 4, 2023 Champions League, Group D  Donetsk is home to the best team in Ukraine. They had a brief fall from grace after three straight titles from 2017-2019, but reclaimed the top position on the table last season. Shakhtar means miner in Ukrainian; they'll have to dig deep to beat us despite their home advantage. Editor's Note: The game froze after the first time we played this match, sending us back to the start of the month. The result below is what happened the first time around. I consider it the true outcome. The second time around I set out aiming to get beat, but I couldn't use our youth squad as they were unregistered for the competition. So of course that time we went down by two very quickly and then fought our way back to a comfy 4-2 victory.  On top of the defeat we also lost Mattias Laux for two weeks due to an injury during training. It would keep him out for the next two or three club matches. If we somehow go undefeated in Europe and/or the league this year we need to put a huge asterisk on it. Starting Formation: 4-2-3-1 Control Starting 11: Kovacevic, Cirjak, O'Hanlon, Quiboulaz, Taffarel, Morvan, Bailey (c), Argenti, Allan, Collett, Stringel. Subs: Fitzgerald, Reed, Laux, Mair, Petts, Parr, Aarts. My request in the pre-match pep talk for a flying start couldn't have been answered any sooner, as Stringel scores 13 seconds after the kickoff. Collett doubles our joy before five minutes are up. Both assisted by Argenti. We can't add any more after that despite myriad invitations, and while we hold a two-nil lead at the half the Ukrainians have created more clear cut chances than we have thanks to an effective counterattack. I tell Taff and Tonci to hang back a bit further on the defense, hoping that will reduce the risk of giving up easy goals in the second half, but my halftime exhortation to stay focused goes over like a lead balloon. They should have listened to me, Shakhtar makes it a one goal game twelve seconds into the closing half of the game, and then tie it up after less than 10 minutes of play. My rage is incandescent on the sideline, and I immediately bring on Matthias Laux to staunch the bleeding. It doesn't work, Shakhtar's striker picks up his hat trick six minutes past the hour. I breathe a sigh of relief when we score what I thought was a literal last minute goal from Argenti, but Shakhtar march right back down the pitch and Oleksandr Bozkho picks up his fourth goal after entering the game at halftime. We spent five minutes beating on Shakhtar and got sloppy, lazy, and pathetic. I don't stop screaming at the players until the plane ride back to the UK lands.   Shakhtar 4-3 Wrexham The digital hiccup means that I don't call O'Hanlon into my office and tell him that he needs to step up his game or he's gone. Oh well, I'm sure I'll get another chance given his mediocrity to date. At Tottenham Hotspur, October 7, 2023 Premier League  Other than Laux being healthy and available this match is unaffected by the reality wobble of 2023. Tottenham didn't avoid relegation by much last season, but talent-wise they're still one of the six best clubs in the league. They're doing better this season, sitting in 7th place through six matches. Starting Formation: 4-2-3-1 Control Starting 11: Kovacevic, Reed, Laux, Hammatt, Taffarel, Mair, Petts, Parr, Shirra, Mujkic (c), Thiago. Subs: Fitzgerald, Cirjak, O'Hanlon, Bailey, Allan, Gabbianelli, Aarts. Thiago has two clean chances and nothing to show for them, which is apparently par for the course from him. We're generally pushing Spurs around, but it could all go to hell in a heartbeat. I bawl out the team for their failure and ineptitude around the net, but they go right back to missing chances in the second half. When Thiago misses an open net for the third time on the day I pull him for Aarts and the Belgian makes his argument for more playing time within two minutes of being brought on. Just as I'm telling the team to start playing it safe Tottenham equalize on a Cirjak error. My substitutions both giveth and taketh away. It's the death knell for our perfect season, and Arsenal's record for consecutive Premier League victories is safe for the nonce. Man of the Match: Mateo Mujkic.   Tottenham 1-1 Wrexham  You don't want to be on the team that loses to Mexico at home, do you? vs Mexico, October 13, 2023 International Friendly  Dos a cero or bust. I wouldn't make us favorites for the match, but the outcome hinges on how well we play defense. I expect that we'll have our chances on the counter attack, and that we'll be able to score at least one against El Tri. Starting Formation: 4-5-1 Counter Starting 11: Toninho, Parsons, Latham, Brown, Erlic (c), Romaneiro, Woods, Ramos, Burman, Munk, Carroll. Subs: Gomez, Thompson, Robles, Bruno, Paulinho, Lang, Hyndman, Barrett, Lenz, Saavedra, Mancini. It's a quiet game until the 78th minute, with the only prior action having been handled ably by the keepers. Then Mexico seemingly breaks the game open with a late goal, only to see the Americans storm back to answer immediately afterward. Each side trades haymakers looking for the winner over the course of the final ten minutes, but at the end the flurry of excitement has changed the outcome from a nil-nil draw to a one-one draw.   USMNT 1-1 Mexico vs Costa Rica, October 17, 2023 International Friendly  Drawing against an excellent team like Mexico can't really be seen as a disappointment, but if we don't win here it'll be the first international break we've had since my first matches helming the team where we haven't won at least once. Starting Formation: 4-5-1 Counter Starting 11: Gomez, Robles, Latham, Brown, Bruno, Lang, Woods (c), Barrett, Saavedra, Lenz, Mancini. Subs: Toninho, Thompson, Paulinho, Parsons, Erlic, Hyndman, Romaneiro, Ramos, Munk, Burman, Carroll. Saavedra does not show the same nose for the goal he's had in Brazil this season during his time on the pitch. Nor does anyone else, of our fifteen shots only two are on target. We have to settle for a draw, despite winning the match according to every statistic but the one that matters. What a waste of everyone's time.   USMNT 0-0 Costa Rica  They have no right to be happy with two draws. We need a lot of work if we're going to assure a deep run in 2026. Right now I wouldn't be shocked by anything from a group stage exit to a quarterfinal berth.  Another mixed showing drops us another two spots in the rankings. It's going to be hard to climb them over the next couple years seeing as we don't play many matches until 2025 and the Gold and Confederations Cups.  Abramovich is pushing 60 at this point, perhaps he's bored of a team that hasn't finished top four in the last two seasons? I just hope that no one comes in trying to buy our Dragons.  My weekly podcasts on ESPN are a hit with all the kids and I've always got time to discuss how I handle player selection. In this case it's in response to Saavedra's coach complaining about the fact that I played him for 45 minutes in our second friendly. I'm not sure why he's complaining, considering I followed his instructions.  Well this bears keeping an eye on for the future. The tournament only takes place once every four years, I expect I'll forget about it just in time for Ikeda to get called up in 2027. At Newcastle United, October 21, 2023 Premier League  I may be taking Newcastle too lightly here, but the following three matches are a meatgrinder. I'm willing to take a risk up Tyneside way for a better prepared club come next week's gauntlet. Starting Formation: 4-2-3-1 Control Starting 11: Fitzgerald, Cirjak, O'Hanlon, Quiboulaz, Loseille, Bailey (c), Petts, Argenti, Allan, Rouissi, Aarts. Subs: Kovacevic, Taffarel, Hammatt, Mair, Collett, Ikeda, Gabbianelli. That did not go as planned. Newcastle don't play particularly well, but they get a lucky free kick goal in the 17th minute, and I'm forced to watch teenager James Loseille get abused all game by the Newcastle right midfielder until I finally can't take any more and sub him out. It doesn't matter, we can't get anything going offensively and Newcastle didn't even need the dagger in the 88th minute to finish us off. It's the first time since last March that we were held scoreless. We're not going undefeated.   Newcastle 2-0 Wrexham  It had to happen sometime. The key is to make a quick recovery from this stumble. We've already ceded first place in the league to Manchester United, who've not lost yet this season. vs Paris Saint-Germain, October 25, 2023 Champions League, Group D  PSG struggled to a draw in Russia, and they lost when we lost in the world before the crash, so it's entirely possible that this group will be as hotly contested as I imagined. Knocking PSG out of the Champions League would warm the cockles of my heart considering how often they try to buy our players. Two of them, Oleg Suslov and El Juez, feature in their starting lineup tonight. Starting Formation: 4-2-3-1 Control Starting 11: Kovacevic, Reed, Laux, Hammatt, Taffarel, Morvan, Petts, Argenti, Shirra, Mujkic (c), Thiago. Subs: Fitzgerald, Cirjak, Quiboulaz, Mair, Bailey, Collett, Stringel. An even first thirty minutes leads to increasingly dangerous PSG attacks, which culminate in El Juez putting us to the sword in the 41st minute. Half the team looks nervous, with Argenti and Thiago looking half out of their gourd with fear. It's not a fitting look for the reigning champions of Europe, but keeps me from throwing the library at them during halftime. I'm about to pull Argenti for Collett after an hour of feckless play, but just as Collett is preparing to enter the match the young Italian scores the equalizer. So I bring on Stringel for Thiago instead. That works out wonderfully, as Stringel scores after being on the pitch less than 10 minutes to give us the lead. PSG comes close to pulling even when a cannonade repelled by the crossbar, but Argenti struts his stuff with a second goal in the 84th minute. We finish a rousing second half with Taff nodding in a Meteor free kick from midfield, and PSG is sent packing back to Paris. It's a second half performance deserving rapturous praise, and I'm eager to spread the credit after the match. Man of the Match: Meteor Mujkic   Wrexham 4-1 PSG  First you give them a proper rogering.  Then you cuddle close and tell them you love them.  I'm totally in his head. vs Manchester City, October 28, 2023 Premier League  I circled 8 match days on the calendar when the Premier League fixture list was released. September 16th against Chelsea was the first. This is the second. If we can get twelve points from those eight match days we'll be favorites to win the league again. It'll be interesting to see how City approaches this game, we play them again in three days, in Manchester, in the League Cup. I expect them to throw their best eleven out against us, but they're looking ragged at the moment with four first team players ailing and another three in need of a rest. Their midweek match wasn't a cakewalk either, they faced off against Juventus and played most of their first team. Starting Formation: 4-2-3-1 Control Starting 11: Kovacevic, Cirjak, Laux, Quiboulaz, Loseille, Mair, Bailey, Collett, Stringel, Mujkic (c), Thiago. Subs: Fitzgerald, Reed, O'Hanlon, Morvan, Allan, Argenti, Aarts. Collett and Mujkic both miss opportunities for an early tally, and we pay for our wastefulness when City hit us on the break. We don't stay down for long, Stringel hits a bomb that the City keeper must leap for, and the rebound falls to Thiago. He slaps it off the post back to himself, and puts it away on the second shot. He doesn't need two tries for his second goal ten minutes later, and we take a 2-1 lead into intermission. I tell the team to stay focused, we've played well and allowed just one shot but another goal could put paid to everything we've worked for so far. They listen to me, with the exception of Cirjak, and we play a determined second half without allowing City a soft goal to put themselves back into the game. We don't have the comfort of a two goal lead, though, and my fears come to fruition when Kovacevic makes an uncharacteristic lapse in judgment and bobbles the ball across our own goal-line for the equalizer. It's a frustrating draw given how well we played, but we don't deserve more when we only managed to get four of seventeen shots on target. Man of the Match: Thiago.   Wrexham 2-2 Manchester City At Manchester City, October 31, 2023 Capital One Cup, Fifth Round  Fancy seeing you again so soon. City have their top stars on the bench to start the match, but they're only running out one young player. Given their home field advantage we're going to need a very good performance to advance to the next round. Starting Formation: 4-2-3-1 Counter Starting 11: Kovacevic, Reed, Laux, Hammatt, Taffarel, Morvan, Bailey, Argenti, Shirra, Mujkic (c), Thiago. Subs: Fitzgerald, Quiboulaz, Mair, Stringel, Collett, Aarts. When Thiago is on you can see why he's so great. In the fourteenth minute he scores using his weaker foot to deke the keeper out of his boots. Our counter attack is working swimmingly, we narrowly miss another goal on a Mujkic to Thiago connection. City's attack hasn't been shut down entirely, though, and I'm cautious about expressing optimism halfway through the match. That's especially the case with Mark Bloem entering the match after the half. I feel more secure after Thiago's second goal, set up by an audacious pass by Shirra. City are left with no choice but to press ahead, playing directly into our strategy. It doesn't work for them, and they won't be lifting the League Cup trophy this year. Man of the Match: Scott Shirra   Man City 0-2 Wrexham  The only way this would be more enjoyable is if we'd won both games.  There's video evidence, you schmuck. USMNT  On the one hand we drew with the most recent World Cup champs. On the other, we drew against Los Ticos. There's no more national team duty until next March, when we'll take on African Cup of Nations' holder Mali, and I have to admit I'm grateful for the reprieve. Wrexhamp  We've come streaking back down to earth in the league, just as I was afraid of. The loss to Newcastle is on my shoulders, but given that we were five minutes and an own goal from going three for three against PSG and Man City I stand by my decision. It is disappointing that a six match winning streak to start the season has still left us four points back of Manchester United. What's more intriguing to me is that Sheffield United are sitting in fourth place after two full months of games. I can't imagine they keep it up for the full season, but we face off against them in ten days and they clearly aren't the pushovers most prognosticators envisioned finishing 19th this season. Meanwhile we'd still be atop our group even if the game hadn't frozen, and PSG would be in even worse shape, but I dislike the change in result. As we promptly dropped seven points in the Premier League after the Shakhtar replay we might have been better off if the original result had held. Trips to Russia and Paris remain on the schedule for the group stage, but up five points with a home match remaining against the Ukrainians we should sail through to the knockout round. Lastly, an update on Rocky vs. Thiago... The Bastard of the Bernabeu: 7 goals in 14 appearances. Thiago: 8 goals in 11 appearances. Things looked a lot better for Rock before Thiago lit up City for four goals in the last two matches. Barring injury both of them will end up with great numbers for the season.  
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Aug 13, 2014 20:53
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habeasdorkus posted:That leads to more chances from other Inter players, but they aren't half the players that Rados is and those go for naught. So when Shahed Parr scores an all time golazo in the 68th minute it restores the lead. It's a monstrous drive hit from roughly 70 yards away, and it's the longest range goal I've ever seen in Football Manager. poo poo! Did you see that? He must have a foot like a traction engine!
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Aug 13, 2014 21:01
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Based on your avaerage CA chart habeas, ManU is as good as they were in their 100 point season so expect them not to lose for a while. Also who is Mark Bloem supposed to be? Dreamsicle fucked around with this message at 22:58 on Aug 13, 2014 |
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Aug 13, 2014 22:07
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I guess the holographic technology has a few kinks. Given that our stadium is at its largest capacity, does this mean we will soon plateau in terms of revenue?
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Aug 13, 2014 23:42
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Xtanstic posted:I guess the holographic technology has a few kinks. Given that our stadium is at its largest capacity, does this mean we will soon plateau in terms of revenue? Check out them jersey sales numbers! But yeah, stadium revenue is just about topped out right now. We'll still get better and more sponsorships, and move more merchandise, but barring a new stadium we're maxed out for season tickets/walk-up sales/gameday merch and food sales. Mark Bloem = Memphis Depay, presently of PSV. He's one of the last non-regen superstars.
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Aug 13, 2014 23:51
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How much is an entirely new stadium again? And where would we build it, and how long would it take?
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Aug 14, 2014 00:43
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Lynneth posted:How much is an entirely new stadium again? And where would we build it, and how long would it take? Demolish the Racecourse and I will burn this thread to the ground.
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Aug 14, 2014 00:46
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Brony Hunter posted:Demolish the Racecourse and I will burn this thread to the ground. I don't think you need to worry about that since the space-time continuum is growing unstable.
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Aug 14, 2014 00:48
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Racecourse Grounds or bust. When people start calling Wrexham evil megabastards, we can always point to things like this and say that we care for the citizens of Wales! It's a shame our winning streak got broken so close to the real-life number. At least Thiago is doing excellently to compensate for Bastable though.
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Aug 14, 2014 01:02
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I really want a 70,000 fan occupancy shrine to the new lord of Whales. An affront to the gods of English and international football is something we should strive for in our quest to become the best megabastard around.
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Aug 14, 2014 15:19
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Where's my giant fuckoff dragon statue, AJ?
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Aug 14, 2014 18:03
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Jenner posted:Where's my giant fuckoff dragon statue, AJ? Right outside the Racecourse Ground.
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Aug 14, 2014 18:14
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Is it possible the AI coaches are whining about international playing time in spite of you following their instructions because to us 45 minutes means "a half" and to them 45 minutes means "pedantically complain the moment 45 minutes of play are followed by a 46th minute of injury time"?
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Aug 14, 2014 22:13
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tomanton posted:Is it possible the AI coaches are whining about international playing time in spite of you following their instructions because to us 45 minutes means "a half" and to them 45 minutes means "pedantically complain the moment 45 minutes of play are followed by a 46th minute of injury time"? That would sound quite a bit like standard SI quality control.
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Aug 14, 2014 23:06
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 Election!AJ_Impy is stepping down as president of the board, after a fruitful tenure that saw us establish ourselves as one of the top teams in the world and capture our first major honors, topped off with an emphatic double last season in the Premiership and Champions League. The position is open to anyone who hasn't been president before (i.e. anyone other than AJ_Impy and Sky Shadowing). Anyone who is interested in the position should submit their campaign slogan and a script for a 30 second/1 minute ad in support of their candidacy. They should also pick 0-1 options from the Style of Play category and 0-2 of the Transfer Policy category that they will implement should they win the election. Note that each philosophy has a wide range of effects, including whether players wish to sign with us. One reason we've been so successful picking up young, high ceiling players is because we have a club philosophy of developing the teens into frontline starters and putting the slightly older ones right into the first team. Style of Play I) Play possession football This philosophy is essentially tiki-taka, made famous by the late aughts Barcelona and Spanish national teams that were each among the very best ever assembled on the club and national level. It's about keeping suffocating possession of the ball, dazzling our opponents with an array of creative one touch passing, and scoring a ton of goals thanks to how often we have the ball. We already do much of this with our 4-2-3-1 Control, though our version is significantly less interested in possession and more focused on taking our shots when we get them. II) Play attacking football Winning is great and all, but it's much more fun to watch when you're playing positive soccer. Attacking play is focused less around slowly working the ball into the box to create good opportunities and instead around an uptempo slashing style. By it's nature it's not very defensive, the goal is to put shots on net rather than eat up the clock by holding possession. III) Play defensive football What point is running up and down the field all day if you're shipping loads of goals? Why is an “exciting” 3-3 draw better than a 1-0 victory? Defense wins championships, and you will never lose if you never let the other side score. The defensive style is all about good positioning, teamwork, and discipline, and getting the ball upfield on counter-attacks to score the only goal you need to win. IV) Rely on set-pieces We used this in our early seasons, and I think it was bugged. We were among the league leaders for goals from corners, and were getting 20%+ of our goals from set pieces, and I got a big fat zero in this category. Pick this if you want to Transfer Policy A) Sign players from the President's nation If I followed this to the letter it would represent a gigantic change in how I hunt for new talent. I would have to focus on finding players from the President's nation (e.g. for an American chairman I'd be judged based on how many Americans I was bringing to the club). If you choose this option you must state what nationality you would like to use or if you'd prefer the default of Welsh. I will chaff at this mandate regardless, but how cross I get will depend on where the new President is from. Germany, for example, would elicit mild grumbling while the Seychelles might cause an aneurysm. B) Make high profile signings I will be judged based upon the reputation of the players we're signing. That will mean transfers for finished products, who are generally in their late 20s or early 30s. The new chairman will demand that we sign the most renowned footballers in the world, to match our status as the best club in the world. This gets expensive, especially since we generally won't be able to sell them for a high price when they hit a serious age related decline. C) Sign young players for the first team We currently have this enabled. The board will want me to sign players under the age of 24 for the first team, something I've been all too happy to do so far. I've gotten good to perfect marks on this, I think our average first team age has been somewhere between 20-24 for the entire time I've been at Wrexham, and I've only signed a handful of players over thirty. D) Develop through youth We currently have this enabled. The board will look for me to sign teenagers and develop a sexy youth program, eventually graduating them to the senior team. They want to see me poaching young talent from other clubs as well. I've been very successful at this, I can't recall my rating ever dropping below 100% on this measure. You have until 12pm EST Sunday, August 17, to throw your hat into the ring. habeasdorkus fucked around with this message at 16:59 on Aug 15, 2014 |
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Aug 15, 2014 16:55
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It is with regret that I leave the presidency of this amazing club, working with the greatest manager the world has yet seen. When I took over, we were languishing in the lower reaches of the Premier League, and I tip my hat to my predecessor Sky Shadowing for getting us there. Under my regime, we claimed the 2021 FA Cup, the 2023 Premier League and the 2023 Champions' League, in each case for the first time. I have fulfilled my promise to build a giant fuckoff dragon statue. I have fulfilled my promises to see us win the league, win the Champions' League, and to knock the oil oligarchs off their perch. I even built up the Racecourse Ground into one of the finest stadia in the country, whilst remaining true to its place as our heritage going back over a century. But there is one promise I made that I have not yet fulfilled. It is for this reason that I must step down and see that that promise is fulfilled personally. For Wrexham, I used my extensive
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Aug 15, 2014 17:34
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habeusdorkus, could you post the complete current executive set up/board of directors/et al?
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Aug 15, 2014 17:41
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