Hello all, been a long time since I've been on Susie, glad to see it's still going, I spent many an hour on here during the early years of FM. I've had a bit of time to play the game recently so I've started up a save in the career section.

Here you go mate

 

So without further ado, here is a look at my initial squad at Coles Lane;

Solid enough to acheive the boards objective of a top half finish in the league this season I think. I have added some experience to the team by bringing in a few older players to blend with the youthful make-up of the team;

 

Danny Quinn - Journeyman striker who actually used to be my barber in real life when I lived in Ashby-de-la-zouch , he has spent his career representing a whole host of clubs in Leicestershire and joins us after being let go by Ashby Ivanhoe. He will provide a useful rotation option up front.

Matt Roome - Another one I knew from my time in the East Midlands, Matt was an academy graduate at Villa but failed to make the breakthrough at Villa Park, he has spent most of his career playing for Gresley Rovers and more recently Stapenhill in Burton-upon-Trent. He's an experienced fullback who's determined personality will be of benefit to the squad.

Jake Sheridan - At 37 Jake is obviously past his best, but he vastly experienced at National League level after playing for Tamworth, Lincoln, Alfreton and Boston United as well as a spell in the EFL with Notts County earlier in his career. He joins us in a player-coach role so he can transition from the pitch to touchline during his stay with us.

Callum Griffin - Central midfielder who will spend the season on loan to us from neighbouring Tamworth to add bolster our ranks.

 

The board expect us to finish in the top half of Northern Premier Midlands this season and work towards promotion back to step three over the next few seasons, not an unrealistic expectation;

I don't care about the Northern Premier cup, I will use that to rest my key players, however a good run in the FA cup and/or Trophy would be great to generate some funds. Sutton's best ever performances in the FA Trophy is reaching the third round in 2003/04; they have never been beyond the first round proper in the FA Cup (They last did so in 1992 where they met Bolton)  which seems like a good target to aim for over the coming years.

 

Here is the media's predictions for the coming campaign;

The champions are promoted automatically to the Northern Premier League, 2nd to 5th contest the play-off's to join them.

The fixtures against Boldmere St Michaels will be important to our supporters as we are only two miles apart from the Mikes. Coleshill and Walsall Wood are also less than ten miles away, so there will be plenty of local flavour to our season.

Hello all, thank you for taking the time to check out my career.I am using the excellent non-league expansion by Lionel Messi which you can find HERE.

I now live in Cumbria, but for this save I will be returning to my hometown of Sutton Coldfield to try and bring some glory to this leafy suburb in North Birmingham.

 

With a population of just under 110k people, The Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield, to give it it's full name is a pretty big place, by far the largest constituancy in Birmingham, it is famous for having one of largest urban parks in Europe which played host to several events at the 2022 Commonwealth games. Whilst football is by far the most popular sport in these parts, the local club has long suffered from it's close proximity to Aston Villa, who severely drain the potential fanbase. Indeed Villa's training ground Bodymoor Heath is just outside the town.

 

Currently the Royals are In Northern Premier League Division One Midlands at Step four of the non-league system, where they have been since suffering relegation from the Northern Prem in 2018. My short term goal will be to return them to step seven within three seasons. I would then like to help my hometown club into the the National Leagues, which they have never graced before. Long term the goal is to reach the football league but that is a long, long way off yet.

 

Hi, I'm starting a non-league career in the Cumberland leagues, can somone do the logos for me please, it would be much appreciated. 🙂

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Can someone do this large and small logo for me please

 

Squad and Transfers

 

 

Permanent Transfers Out (First Team players in bold)
Window	Name	To	Fee
Summer 23'	Joe Hugill	West Brom	£275k (£350k)
	Sam Mather	Ipswich	£105k (£175k)
Jan 2024	Victor Lindelof	Tottenham	£10.75M
	Maxi Oyedele	Southampton	£27.5k (£215k)
	Ethan Ennis	Luton	£180k (£215k)
	Kie Plumley	Port Vale	£8.75k
	Louis Jackson	Southampton	£155k (£625k)
	Rhys Bennett	Blackburn	£200k
	James Nolan	Preston	£56k (£82k)
	Tom Heaton	Colombus Crew	Free
Summer 24'	Charlie McNeil	Bristol City	Free
	Shola Shoretide	PSG	Free
	Ruben Curley	QPR	Free
	Ethan Wheatley	Stoke	Free
	Anthony Martial	Wolves	Free
	Omari Forson	Brentford	Free
	Ashton Missin	QPR	Free
	Willy Kambwala	Luton	Free
	Rafael Varane	Al Nassar	£59M (£72M)
	Malachi Sharpe	Watford	£225k (£325k)
	Sam Murray	Birmingham	£110k (£175k)
	Altay Bayindir	Galatasaray	£3.9M
	Tyler Fredricson	Blackburn	£115k (£185k)
January 2025	Zach Baumann	Tranmere	Free
	Bruno Fernandes	Al-Ahli (KSA)	£90M
	Will Murdoch	Carlisle	Free
	Victor Musa	Sheffield Wednesday	Free
	Casimiro	Al-Ahli (KSA)	£64M
	Dermot Mee	Cardiff	£13k (15.75k)
	Jadon Kamson	Burnley	Free
	Jacob Devaney	Sunderland	Free
	Sonny Aijforee	Preston	Free
	Reece Munro	Carlisle	Free
	Luke Shaw	Tottenham	£54M
Summer 25'	Habeeb Ogunneye	Blackburn	Free
	Brandon Williams	Leicester	Free
	Amad Diallo	Rangers	Free
	Sofyan Amrabat	Sevilla	£18.75M

I've made over £250M in player sales so far, the transfers of Bruno, Varane and Casimiro to Saudi Club's were pretty much forced, I would have preferred them to stay as they were obviously important players, but they indicated they wanted to follow the money and leave, and I won't have anyone who doesn't want to be here

Luke Shaw decided he wanted a new challenge and opted to join Spurs, I snapped their hand off for £54M considering how injury prone he is. Amrabat was a strange one, which I think is more to do with a flaw in FM than anything. I signed him permanently just a year before following a successful loan spell, he was mainly a rotation for Casimiro in the ball winning central midfield role, however he became unhappy saying he wanted to play as a DM as a BWM, which I accepted as Casimiro was going, however he later came back saying I had broken my promise (I hadn't) and wanted to go. I was a bit confused but f*ck him, he can go.

 

And so to my signings;

 

Window	Name	From	Nationality	Cost	Position
Jan 2024	Ivan Toney	Brentford	English	£39.5M	ST
	Valentin Barco	Boca Juniors	Argentine	£8.5M	LWB or LW
	Vanja Milinkovic-Savic	Torino	Serbian	Loan with option to buy	GK
Summer 24'	Axel Disasi	Chelsea	French	£15.5M	CB
	Sofyan Amrabat	Fiorentina	Moroccan	£17M	DM
	Vanja Milinkovic-Savic	Torino	Serbian	£17.5M	GK
	Ricardo Solbes	Roma	Argentine	£6M	ST
	Ezri Konsa	Aston Villa	English	£51M	CB or RB
Jan 2025	Claudio Echeverri	River Plate	Argentine	£8.5	AM or RW
	Manu Kone	Mochengladbach	French	£67M	DM or CM
Summer 25'	Kieran Tierney	Arsenal	Scottish	£30M	LWB

I've tried to remain financially responsible due to the clubs considerable debt and I have only spent what I have made in sales. So far everyone has been a hit! Toney has netted 16 times as he and Rasmus Hojlund compete to be my starting striker. Konsa was a big outlay but as a Villa fan IRL I thought he was worth it, he has slotted in beautifully alongside Lisandro Martinez as my preferred centreback pairing. 

Manu Kone has been immense, a really complete midfielder who can defend and attack equally well. Young Valentin Barco has won several young player awards with his electrifying dribbling and I really appreciate him being able to play anywhere down the left side, though he is better as a winger I think. 18 year old forward Ricardo Solbes made a handful of appearances from the bench towards the end of the season, scoring three goals in four games, very encouraging indeed! I've now sent him on loan to Rotherham to get some regular starts.

 

 

Full Squad

Onana has been great for me, he is my first choice keeper, with Vanja coming in for cup games. I fully trust both of them and have no issues here. Vitek is on loan at Forest Green and can be recalled if necessary. 

 

I've only just signed Tierney, so I can't comment much on him yet, but I expect him to pick up from Luke Shaw in the wing back role, rotating reguarly with Tyrel Malacia who has improved alot since I joined the club. I have four really solid centrebacks in Konsa, Disasi, Maguire and Martinez, the difficulty is keeping them all happy with their playing time. 

 

I play 4-2-3-1 with two DM's, so midfield needs to be flexible, which I think this group is. I did consider selling Christian Eriksen when a Saudi bid for £15M came in, I decided to keep him for another year though as he can play DM, CM or AM which is always useful. Kone and Scott McTominay are my favored DM partnership with Eriksen regularly coming in to rest Scotty Mac. With the departure of Amrabat I have promoted Isak Hansen-Aaroen to the first team, he looks a great prospect. Kobbie Mainoo is also one for the future, as is Jack Fletcher who is with the first team during our pre-season tour of the US to gain experience.

Further forward, Mason Mount has cemented his starting place as my AM following Bruno Fernandes;s departure in January, Mount scored 12 and assisted 13 last season, I signed young Claudio Echeverri to provide him with competition.

Out wide we have four world class wingers in Rashford, Sancho, Anthony and Garnacho, all of whom have been fantastic whenever I call on them, it is real juggling act to keep them all happy though.

 

Rasmus Hojlund has become one of the worlds best players, 38 goals in 38 games last season! Naturally he is my first choice, though Ivan Toney comes on in most games and starts in cup matches and those against weaker oppositions. Ricardo Solbes looks like he has a bright future, scoring 3 in 4 sub appearances last season.

 

So, Thank you for reading! next update will be the 2025/26 season.

Greetings all, It's been years since I last posted on Susie, I used to be a very active member, but starting a family limited my preciously obsessive FM gaming time! I hadn't purchased FM since FM19 (Having previously owned every FM game and CM way back to CM97/98). Anyway, I saw the latest FM advertised online, and with a little more time on my hands now all the kids are in school and nursery I though, why not?

 

For my first career I decided to start at the top end of the game in order to familiarise myself with new features without the headache of having to learn all about all my squad at the same time. I chose Man United, who on paper have a great squad, but for whatever reason(s) have failed to achieve much success since the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson more than a decade ago as wealthy rivals have surpassed them. My aim is to restore them as a major player in English football, and indeed globally. 

 

I'm now at the beginning of my third season at Old Trafford; My first two have been unexpectedly successful, putting together an incredible 24 game winning run in all competitions upon my appointment to the hot seat. That run proved the basis of a shock title win as we clinched the championship by three points against City as well as winning the FA Cup against Tottenham and reaching the Champions League semi-final, where we lost 4-3 on aggregate to City who went on to beat Inter in the final in a repeat of the previous seasons final.

There were no cups (Unless you count the community shield) in 2024/25 as we were beaten in the quarter finals of both the FA cup and Champions League by Arsenal and Bayern Munich respectively, Though we did go on to retain our League title, again by three points, this time with arch rivals Liverpool providing our main challenger. 

Now I'm at the beginning of 2026/27, Obviously the aim is to make it three in a row in the league, and to try and win the clubs first Champions League in nearly two decades. I also want to continue my record of never having lost at Old Trafford in the league and continue chipping away at the United greats on my quest to become the best of the best!

 

 

Next update I'll fill you in on my current squad and who I've brought and sold over the last two years.

 

Hi;

I have just started a fantasy club career with a team called Ashcote United. I would like a red and white badge that has a tree and the clubs name, somewhat similar to Nottingham Forest's crest.

Any help would be much appreciated!

Welcome one and all to what I intend to be a long term project, Sculpting a club from nothing, establishing a successful team that will take on the veritable assault course of English lower league football in the hope of some day playing with the big kids in their far off professional divisions.

Who are these future silver collectors I hear you ask, well let's waste no more time....



Ashcote were founded in early 2018 when a two football loving businessmen from from the neighbouring towns of Ashby-de-la-Zouch and Swadlincote drunkenly decided to form their own club. They invested a considerable amount of money into buying a plot of land from a farmer in Moira, a small village midway between Ashby and Swad to play on and develop in the future if the club progresses in the way they envision.



Nicknamed the Forresters due to their position within the National Forest, Ashcote replace Asfordby in the Leicestershire Senior League, down in step six of the non-league system. The establishment of the new entity has already provoked tension in the local area as both Ashby and Swadlincote have established non-league outfits who haven't taken kindly to the upstarts encroaching on their patches. It will only take one promotion to catch up with Ivanhoe, and three to get abreast of Gresley. (assuming neither of them are promoted or relegated in the meantime) so catching them will be my short-term objective.

On day one I had no staff, or players. Now at the end of pre-season my squad looks impressive for this level;

Everybody is on a amateur contract so no wages to pay. This will enable me to save any money generated for the future when it may be of more use to help us up the divisions. For realism sake I limited myself to players who hail from towns or cities within twenty miles. Nobody the casual football fan will have heard of except for former Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie;

Not many teams in the eleventh tier of the game can claim to have a former England international amongst their ranks. Even at the ripe old age of 41 Hendrie looks a good player for this level. I just have to be careful in managing his training and game time to ensure he's fit.

In fact we own seven of the constituents of the league dream team;


I think we should certainly be looking to escape this division in our inaugural season, we have both squad depth and some talent. Holding on to my best players will be a major challenge however, particularly if we do well.

Yeah I'm good thanks, just had a new baby and am about to start a new job.

You?

Happy new year ya'll

Good morning all, long time no see! I hope everybody is well.

I see this section of the forums is floundering, a pity given how active it once was. Hopefully bumping an old thread might help.

I'm in the throws of what promises to be an eventful few days, I had to go into work to conduct job interviews this morning but am now making my way over to Birmingham in preparation for my wife's scheduled C-section tomorrow morning. Very much looking forward to meeting the latest addition to the clan.

Thanks mate, yes I'm. Enjoying it more than any save I've had in years now.

Here is a look at my current squad, it is a really exciting bunch of players with several wonderkids some of whom have both been purchased and some of whom are acadamy products.

Goalkeepers

Jordan Pickford was one of my first signings as a manager as I spent £20M to buy him from Sunderland for Manchester United in 2016. Six years later I signed him again, this time for almost double what I paid the first time, such is my faith in Jordan who does a grand job as my first choice keeper.
I also know I can rely on Dutch international Jeron Zoet who plays most of our cup and Continental games, including last seasons Europa League final.
Italian U21 international Diego Cuiti is currently on loan at Galatasaray. He made his one and only Monaco start so far in the Coupa de France qauter final last season but I am sure he will make plenty more in the future.

Defenders

Jean-Luc Vergnes is the first of the clutch of wonderkids I've brought through our academy in the last two years, we are still working on making him the marauding wing back I ultimatley want him to be, however he is a very solid defensively and quickly turfed out the established Djibril Sidibe who I sold to the Chinese Super League last January.
Kurt Zouma and Jemerson have been a brick wall centre back pairing, Danijel Novakovic is a highly talented 22 year old Serbian international who I would like to give more game time to, however with Zouma and Jemerson being so dependable his opportunities have been sporadic. Polish legend Kamil Glik is the club captain who has made well over 200 appearances for Monaco, however he is undeniably slowing down physically so I will likely be allowing him to leave at the end of the season when his contract expires.

Midfielders

Mexian midfielder Neftali Montano has been by far my most shrewd signing, he cost me absolutely nothing when I snapped him up from Pumas on free transfer last January, he is now valued at £45M! We look more creative when he is in the team, rotating regularly with Serbian Dejan Nisic and Portuguese wonderkid Mario Cristiano in the deep laying playmaker role of my regular 4-2-3-1 formation. Brazilian Fabinho plays the role of ball-winning midfielder as well as vice captain of the club.

Ahead of them are any combination of six attacking midfielders; Callum Gribbin is a former employee of mine from my Old Trafford days, I promoted him from the reserves on arrival at United, he established himself quickly as a first teamer there but my successor Jochim Lowe deemed Callum surplus to requirements and sent him out on several loans, including one to Toulouse last season where he was instrumental in helping them finish fourth and qualify for the Champions League. When the opportunity to sign him for nothing arose in the summer it was a no brainier for me, having him already knowing French was a big bonus.
Belgian Adrian Bongiovanni was subject to repeated bids from Real Madrid in the summer, not surprising as he contributed 24 assists and 17 goals in 54 appearances last term, thankfully we have so far managed to keep hold of him.
Maxence Huet is another wonderkid from the youth team who is establishing himself, Brian Fevre is yet another wonder kid whom was signed from Manchester City for a massive £59M last January. Argentine Jesus Gonzalez was another big money signing, costing me £35M from Bordeaux, he can play equally well either as a shadow striker of an out-and-out forward.

Strikers

Romelu Lukaku is a familiar name to any football fan, a powerful striker who is in scintillating form this season, scoring ten goals in his appearances so far. Benjamin Finkler was my only major signing this summer as I paid Wolfsburg £24M for their twenty year old hotshot, he has already begun paying me back with five goals in six matches which has caused me a selection headache between him and Lukaku to start as our attacking spearhead.
Moussa Ba is yet another wonderkid whom I handed a debut to on arrival at Monaco, he too has been banging in the goals, bagging 27 in 34 appearances in all competitions last term (Including five in a 6-3 epic against Benfica in the Europa League Semi finals) This season hasn't caught fire for the 20 year old yet with just the one goal, though to be fair most of his game time has come from the bench.
17 year old Diogo Teles is right at the beginning of his football journey, making his debut from the bench last season during a injury crisis, he hasn't managed to find the net yet but I think the Argentine has a bright future ahead of him.

A warm welcome to all! It has been some time since I last created a career thread, mostly as I have struggle for time to play FM, what with family commitments and full time. However I am now six years into my current save which I am enjoying immensely and I would like to share my progress so far, and hopefully future achievements too with you.

The story so far
I'm playing as David Beckham, I used the in game editor to assign him his correct information such as international appearances, favoured and disliked personnel etc. Thus far I have had quite a successful career, it started out as a nationalistic challenge with Man United but has developed beyond that.
During my time with United we won the Premier League twice as well as the 2017/18 FA cup but I was unable to deliver any continental success, reaching the semi-finals of the Europa League in 2016/17 and the last eight of the Champions League the following season, being eliminated by Inter and AC Milan respectively.
The 2018/19 season was a massive disappointment as our title defence never really got going, finishing in fourth place, a long way behind champions Arsenal and failing to collect any silverware. This led to me coming to the conclusion I had taken United as far as I could.

After resigning my post at Old Trafford I was offered the job of Australia's head coach which I saw as a good opportunity to get some international experience in order to land the England job in the future. Things started very well, breezing through both qualifying groups for the 2022 World cup, however our performance at the tournament was sub-par as we failed to make it out of our group which consisted of Holland, Colombia and Austria.
We did earn a silver medal at the 2020 Olympics in Japan, beating Brazil in the semi finals to set up a final against Belgium whom we defeated in the group stage, however this time the Red Devils were much improved, defeating us 4-0. Still second place was more than anyone had expected and was seen as a big achievement.

Following the World cup I resigned from Australia in order to return to club football, eventually accepting an offer from Monaco who were looking for a replacement for Zinedine Zidane who had just left to take on the French national team job. My first season yielded League cup and Europa League glory, beating Tours and my old side Manchester United respectively in the finals. However, despite a strong start to the Ligue 1 season we failed to keep pace with PSG, finishing 3rd, 23 points behind the Oil rich Parisians.
Now just a few games in to 2023/24 the we have started brightly and are hopeful of pushing PSG harder this term, he have already collected some minor silverware, winning the Supercopa EuroAmericana (Europa League Vs Copa SudAmerica winners) against Brazilian outfit Vasco da Gama but were thwarted by PSG in the European Supercup in the same week, throwing away both a goal and man advantage to lose in extra time to our rivals.

Dean Smith has been appointed, Good choice i think. I was always a fan of his when I used to go to Walsall games. Did well at Brentford too.

I’ve just set up a JustGving page for the 150 mile sponsored hike I’m organising. If anybody could contribute it would be most gratefully appreciated. Your text to link here...

You can also donate by text by texting RBME87 followed by your donation amount to 70070.

I'm going to be doing another charity hike next year for Mencap who I work for. I shall be walking from my shop in Loughborough, Leicestershire to Barmouth, Gwynydd. A distance of about 165 miles. I did 80 miles through the Yorkshire Dales in 2013 (which quite a few members of this forum were kind enough to donate towards) but I was in much better shape then so I'm going to have to really work on my fitness between now and next June when I plan on going.

Strange to think Gareth Barry will become the all time Premiership appearance record holder today. I still remember watching him under John Gregory at the Villa when he had spots and a dodgy curtains haircut around 98/99. When he was a left back.

I was a mod on one called RivalManager for a time years ago. I got banned multiple times from this very forum for trying to poach members via the PM system.

Pre-Season Review
We're Going To Win The League...

On the eve of the 2017/18 season, our business is now concluded and we look raring to go;

Although one should never take results from pre-season games too seriously, it's difficult not to gain a sense of cautious optimism after that set of results. In particular the results against Europa League qualifiers Strum Graz and even more so Belgian giants Anderlecht who fielded a side containing the likes of Youri Tielemans, Leander Dendonker and Nicolai Stanicau.

Good start to the season, shame the Bertrand and Forster want to go though.

Thank you mate, hope this helps...

MSV Duisburg Squad 2017/18
The Zebra's Who Have Earned Their Stripes

Goalkeepers


Mark Flekken

1. Mark Flekken
Age:24
Nation: Holland
2016/17 Apps: 36
2016/17 Goals: 54 (conceded)
Notes: Mark is a good shot-stopper who is a reasonable distributor of the ball, however he was let down last season by having a leaky defence in front of him. I am happy for him to remain my number one this term and hopefully with a more solid back-line protecting him we should be much harder to break down.

13. Daniel Zeaiter
Age:22
Nation: Lebanon
2016/17 Apps: 4
2016/17 Goals: 1 (conceded)
Notes: Has only been afforded two appearances since my arrival midway through the season, that may change this season as I look to begin developing players more than I did last year. Daniel is a current international having represented Lebanon nine times.

Defenders

Branimir Bajic

15. Michael Novak
Age:26
Nation: Austria
2016/17 Apps: 25 (SV Mattersburg)
2016/17 Goals: 0
Notes: The first of my new faces this summer, Michael arrives on free transfer from Austrian Bundesliga side Mattersburg so this deal can be considered something of a coup given he his dropping down to a third division club. A solid left wing-back who is very capable of getting forward and supporting the attack as well as staying back to hold the line.

16. Manuel Kober
Age:18
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 9 (Stuttgart II)
2016/17 Goals: 1
Notes: On loan from Stuttgart, Manuel is a promising central defender with a natural sense of anticipation and positioning, two attributes that at times were sadly lacking last season.

22. Dustin Bomheur
Age:26
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 35
2016/17 Goals: 1
Notes: Somewhat average defender in truth, but at 26 it's not to late for him, standing at 6'4 he is always going to be useful at set-pieces. With a well managed training regime he could well evolve into a reasonable player for us which is why I have decided to keep him around.

4. Branimir Bajic
Age:37
Nation: Bosnia
2016/17 Apps: 35
2016/17 Goals: 2
Notes: Club captain Branimir is getting on in years, but what he lacks in pace he makes up for in determination and experience. A tough tackler who is still an ever present after having made more than 200 appearances for the Zebras. Needs to be partnered with a younger centre back who has the legs to track faster forwards.

Enis Hajri
Age:34
Nation: Tunisia
2016/17 Apps: 8
2016/17 Goals: 1
Notes: Currently on the transfer list and not in my plans for next season, I just haven't been able to offload him yet. Reasonable defender but a lack of concentration and determination let him down.

5. Lukas Boeder
Age:20
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 38 (Paderborn)
2016/17 Goals: 1
Notes: On loan from Leverkusen, Lukas spent last season on loan at our divisional rivals Paderborn where he played all 38 games. With the right training he will be a useful ball playing defender who's future surely lies in the higher divisions.

2. Lukas Klunter
Age:21
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 2
2016/17 Goals: 0
Notes: I signed Lukas on loan from Koln towards the end of last season, making his move permanent this summer when his Koln contract expired. I love a good wingback who gets forward and joins in the attack which is exactly what Lukas does. His dribbling skills need work, however he is a good crosser of the ball who possesses a bit of pace which makes him a threat to any 3.Liga defence.

3. Dan-Patrick Poggenberg
Age:25
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 8
2016/17 Goals: 0
Notes: A left full-back who I am re-training as a wing back to get forward more. Currently a transfer target for 1860 Munich.

14. Fabio Leutenecker
Age:27
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 36
2016/17 Goals: 0
Notes: Last season's first choice for the right back slot, though that spot will probably be taken by Lukas Klunter now. Fabio is a fairly average player who is decent back up option but struggles with lapses of concentration and a lack of pace which hinders him.

Midfielders

Fabian Schnellhardt

8. Baris Ozbek
Age:30
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 16
2016/17 Goals: 0
Notes: Tough tackling midfielder who can stay deep and protect the defence or roam forward to join in attacks when needed. Struggled with a severe knee injury last season which only allowed me to pick him during the final month or so. This season he should be fully fit and will form an important part of my central midfield trio.

Mael Corbez
Age:22
Nation: USA
2016/17 Apps: 8
2016/17 Goals: 0
Notes: Initially I transfer listed the Alabama native having not used him much last season and not really intending to do so this season either, however the sale of Martin Dausch to Kaiserslauten left me with a gap to fill in central midfield and Corbez is capable of filling it. So I have given him the benefit of the doubt and removed him from the list to see how he fares.

6. Tim Albutat
Age:24
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 28
2016/17 Goals: 4
Notes: Much like Baris Ozbek, Tim is a versatile central midfielder who can defend as well as get forward depending on the situation. Could possibly be on his way out though as several 2. Bundesliga clubs are interested in him at the moment and sadly the club isn't in a position financially to be turning down any reasonable offers made for it's stars.

17. Fabian Schnellhardt
Age:23
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 28
2016/17 Goals: 6
Notes: A talented young playmaker who could have a future in a higher division (Hopefully with us!) An excellent passer of the ball with a good eye for whats ahead of him. Just needs to work on on his physical attributes as he can be muscled off the ball.

7. Andreas Weigel
Age:25
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 18
2016/17 Goals: 5
Notes: Right winger who proved to be goal threat last season, lacks the pace to power past full backs but does have dribbling ability as well as the ability to pop the ball in the net.

11. Ba-Muaka Simakala
Age:20
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 1 (Borussia Mochengladbach)
2016/17 Goals: 0
Notes: An adaptable attacking player who can play on either flank or through the middle who has joined us on loan from Gladbach. I will be hopeing his workrate improves with some mentoring from one of my more experienced players.

19. Osei Owusu
Age:20
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 13 (Lotte)
2016/17 Goals: 0
Notes: Impressed last season on loan at Lotte from Hoffenheim. I'm hoping that he will keep up his good form as he transitions to us on the left wing.

10. Zlakto Janjic
Age:31
Nation: Bosnia
2016/17 Apps: 27
2016/17 Goals: 6
Notes: Central midfielder who can play either in behind the striker or deeper if required. Composed on the ball and with a good pass which is capable of unlocking defences.

20. Mohammed Cisse
Age:19
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 7
2016/17 Goals: 0
Notes: A product of our youth system I gave Mohammed his debut last season, he certainly looked comfortable in the first team as a shadow striker, whilst he didn't manage to net his first goal he did manage three assists in his seven appearances, five of which were from the bench. He can expect more action this season.

11. Ba-Muaka Simakala
Age:20
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 1 (Borussia Mochengladbach)
2016/17 Goals: 0
Notes: An adaptable attacking player who can play on either flank or through the middle who has joined us on loan from Gladbach. I will be hopeing his workrate improves with some mentoring from one of my more experienced players.

21. Elias Huth
Age:20
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 23 (Chemnitz)
2016/17 Goals: 0
Notes: Hannover loanee who made 23 appearances for defeated play-off finalists Chemnitz last season. Can play either flank or as a striker.

Forwards

Kingsley Onuegbu

18. Bassala Sambou
Age:19
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 0 (Everton)
2016/17 Goals: 0
Notes: Everton striker who the Toffees procured from Coventry City last January for £750k who the Merseysiders have loaned to us for the season to gain experience. He has pace to burn which should cause defenders at this level lots of problems. It's his first touch and composure we will be working on in training.

9. Kingsley Onuegbu
Age:31
Nation: Nigeria
2016/17 Apps: 20
2016/17 Goals: 12
Notes: Fell out of favour with my predecessor, however he repaid me for restoring him to the line up by netting twelve times in twenty games. A formidable target man who is cable of bringing team mates into play as well as creating his own chances.

23. Stanislav Ilutchenko
Age:26
Nation: Germany
2016/17 Apps: 20
2016/17 Goals: 1
Notes: Disappointing last season as he is by far the best of my strikers attribute wise, however he only managed the single goal last season. Though it is only fair to mention that virtually all of his 20 appearances came off the bench. I decided to keep him around in the hope he will improve this season.
______

So that is my squad, the question now is how do I utilise those players? My favourate formation is 4-5-1 which will likely shape up like this;

Flekken

Klunter -- Bomheur -- Bajic -- Novak

Schnellhardt -- Janjic -- Ozbek

Wiegel ----------------------------Simkala

Onuegbu

I have a very versatile squad, most of whom can play in multiple positions so mixing things up is no problem, Indeed I may well employ a two striker system so Onuegbu can knock down balls for the pacy Sambou. I think there could be a good partnership between those two. The wingbacks are expected to get forward and overlap the wingers so we have plenty of width, the challenge will be knitting all these new faces together to form a unit that I hope may be capable of mounting a promotion challenge. The talent is there but we must not fall into the same traps of inconsistency we suffered from last time.

End of 2016/17
Well I'm Glad That's Over...

The season came to a frustrating end as my team showed real improvement for a time after my last update, going on a five game unbeaten run, climbing the table in process. But all good things come to a end, in this case much more abruptly than I would have liked as we got mauled 5-1 by Regensburg and then only managed one win from our final six matches which undid all the hard work we had put in to get into the to half of the table as we slumped down to 13th.

I intend to completely overhaul the squad over the summer and bring in players who fit my tactical preferences better than the current bunch. I've already identified nine players to let go or sell. Money will be a big problem when rebuilding though, unless the board pumps more cash in we are £15k over the wage budget which will make it next to impossible to offer any prospective signings a reasonable wage, meaning the loan market is probably my only option. Thankfully there is no limit on the amount of loans a club can have during a season in Germany so it is possible to furnish my squad using predominately season long loans.

My brief will be the same as last season, finish within the top half, though I'm hopeful that with a full season in charge and the ability to field a team that fits my desired high tempo style, that we might emerge as dark horses in 3.Liga next season. Consistency must improve, after 21 games my record is 8 wins, 7 draws and 6 defeats. Not too bad but it could have been much better if we had seen out games more effectively.

10 Games In
Inconsistency is key

I am now ten games into my tenure as Duisburg head coach and at the moment the jury is still out on me after three wins, four draws and three defeats.

A lack of firepower seems to be our primary problem, I have three strikers on the books, however all three are target men who are squad players at best. I could really use some pace up front but have no money to spend or even available wage budget due to my predecessor overspending so I will have to endure with the resources available and work on re-training my wingers to become inside forwards to try and provide extra support up front.

Since returning from the winter break we have really struggled with just one win from six, I am making small tweeks to the player instructions to try to arrest this decline. I've mostly been deploying 4-1-2-3 with the wingers instructed to cut in and support the lone forward. I've also tried 4-4-1 and plain old 4-4-2 but neither of them bore much fruit. I'm now toying with the idea of 4-2-3-1 with an attacking midfielder or shadow striker in behind the target man. I won't rule out 5-3-2 with wingbacks in the future especially in away games but I think I first need a forward with a bit of pace to play off of one of the big men for that to be a success.

The recent poor run has seen us drop from ninth before the Christmas break, right back to where we started when I took over in fifteenth;

Whilst I neither think we will be relegated or get into contention for promotion this season, it is frustrating to be down in the wrong half of the table again after what was a reasonable start. Still, I am confident that once we find the right tactical blend we will quickly begin climbing up the league again and hopefully assert ourselves as one of the front runners for next season.

It took until late November for a job I was intrested in to become available, however I have now taken the first step on my path to greatness;




Duisburg are struggling in to adapt to life in 3.Liga following their relegation from the second tier last season, they find themselves closer to the dropzone than the promotion places as the halfway point of the season approaches, making the immediate return to 2.Bundesliga that the Zebra's would have been hoping for pre-season seem unlikely now.

I have signed a two year contract with Duisburg, my task for the remainder of this season will to be relieve fears of relegation to Regionalliga and arrest the decline of this club who were a top flight side less than ten years ago. The second year of my contract will be about building a side capable of returning to the second tier.

Fixed. Thanks @Shedender

Hi all and welcome to what I hope will be an successful and entertaining story about one of my favourate ex-pro footballers. I have had success in the past with my David Beckham and Paolo Maldini saves so here goes...





I met Thomas a number of times due to us living on the same road during his time at Villa, he is a very nice guy and was always an exciting player to watch with his famous left footed 'hammer' shots from distance. I was gutted when he left to join Stuttgart in order to (successfully) try and force himself into Germany's 2006 World cup team but it obviously worked out well for him there as he won a Bundesliga title and became club captain for a time. His later career was blighted by injuries as he bounced between England and the continent. Thomas eventually called time on his career in 2013 due to persistent injury problems. In 2007 he became the most high profile footballer to date to come out as gay.


I have loaded England and Germany as my selected leagues (down to the Conference and 3 Liga respectively) and will begin unemployed. I have used the in-game editor to rename the real Thomas Hitzlsperger who is a coach in the database and set all his attributes to one so I'm unlikely to ever encounter him. I also used the in-game editor to give me the correct amount of international caps, global reputation, languages (German & English) and favoured personnel (Arne Friedrich & Philip Lahm) All my attributes are in line with that of the Hitzlsperger in the default database.

I ave some personal goals to work towards in this career;

• Manage Bayern Munich (Thomas's boyhood team)
• Manage German national team
• Win Premier League & Bundesliga
• Win the Euros & World Cup.

As of day one there are three jobs available, Leicester City, Port Vale and Eastleigh. The defending champions seems an unrealistic first club for a untested manager so I'm going to give Leicester a miss, hounestly I can't say the other two appeal to me so I'm going to bide my time and hopefully a more exciting club will come along. I have no preference between starting in England or Germany so we shall see.

Yeah, huge respect for Defoe for the way he's supported the poor boy over the last six months or so.

Horrible for anybody to suffer through cancer but a six year old is just even more tragic, I honestly don't know how I'd cope if my two year old little girl became seriously ill.

RIP