Back to the Journey man. A Lisbon lion's tale.

At the start of a new game, in the hall of fame for Portuguese managers, Jose Mourinho, Jorge Jesus & Andre Villas-Boas have 14 domestic league titles, 17 domestic cups & 6 other club trophies between them. They sit 1st, 4th and 6th in Portugal's nationality hall of fame:



In the nation hall of fame for the nation of Portugal, Jorge Jesus sits second whilst Mourinho sits 10th, Villas-Boas isn't on this list:



The aim for this save is for a young Portuguese manager named Manuel Vargas to become the greatest Portuguese manager there ever was. This isn't quite your standard unemployed, no coaching badges save as I am starting at a specific club, but this is the journey of Manuel Vargas travels around Europe hoping to not only emulate these great managers but become better then them and recognised as the best!

For Manuel Vargas all roads lead back to Lisbon, specifically Sporting Lisbon. While his ultimate aim is to become the greatest Portuguese manager of all time, his personal aim has always been to become the Sporting Lisbon manager, the team he supported as a boy. To become the greatest of all time he must first work his way up and get recognised in the footballing world. As part of his quest to become the G.O.A.T his personal aim of taking Sporting Lisbon to Champions League glory is a must.

Starting with no badges and Sunday league rep:



Initially this save will be European based as the 3 men I am trying to emulate have managed only in Europe bar Villas-Boas who has managed in China so I may end up adding China at some point. Here is my game set up at the start. Large database,I will be removing leagues once I've managed in them and adding some as I go:



The overall aim for this save is to top the hall of fame for Portuguese managers & win the Champions League with Sporting Lisbon, but I do have some other aims I want to achieve during all of this. To top the hall of fame is going to take some serious competition wins, so the other aims for this save in no particular order:-

Become favoured personnel at 3 clubs = ARC Oleiros, Wisla Plock & Lokomotiva Zagreb
Become a club icon at 2 clubs
Become a club legend at 1 club
Become a club legend at Sporting Lisbon
Win at least 3 of the 'top' European leagues (Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A, Ligue 1)
Win at least 1 cup in any nation I manage in = 1/3 Back to back Croatia cup victories with Lokomotiva Zagreb
Win either the Europa or Champions League with a team that came runners up in the save
Win the Champions League with Sporting Lisbon

As well as managing Sporting Lisbon, I have a number of clubs (for various reasons) I'd like to manage at some point, in no particular order:

Slask Wroclaw
FC Eindhoven
FC Erzgebirge Aue
Bayer Leverkeusen
Red Star or Partizan Belgrade
Real Madrid

Also I want to manage Portugal at some point as well.

This is the story of a Lisboeta who leaves Lisbon but a pup, and hopefully one day, returns a lion!

Join me on my journey, man.

Achievements / career progress

Season > Club > Division > Position > Notes
2018-19 |ARC Oleiros |Compeonato de Portugal |1st |Finished top of the division and won the playoffs. Promoted. Manager of the year.

2019 - 20 |ARC Oleiros |Portugal Liga Pro |10th |Avoided relegation. Multiple interview offers. Contract runs until 2021.

2020 - 21 |ARC Oleiros |Portugal Liga Pro |11th |Achieved mid table finish, multiple job interviews & rejections. Resigned at the end of the season.

2021 - 22 |Wisla Plock |Poland 1st division |1st |Won the league, promoted.

2022 - 23 |Wisla Plock |Poland Exstraklasa |14th overall |Stayed on despite multiple times nearly being sacked, 1 job interview

2023 - 24 |Lokomotiva Zagreb |Croatia Top league |3rd |3rd place finish, cup winners, Europa league qualification, manager of the year.

2024 - 25 |Lokomotiva Zagreb |Croatia Top league |5th |5th place finish, Super cup & cup winners,quarter finals of the Europa league.

Challenge progress:

Become favoured personnel at 3 clubs = ARC Oleiros, Wisla Plock & Lokomotiva Zagreb

Win at least 1 cup in any nation I manage in = 1/3 Back to back Croatia cup victories with Lokomotiva Zagreb

Instead of starting unemployed, I am going to be starting at the lowest rep playable club from the start in Portugal that hasn't just been promoted, that club is ARC Oleiros. I always start my saves unemployed but wanted to go slightly different this time around. I feel this is realistic enough as this team are expected to be mid to lower end of the league and as new managers go this is a decent enough team to start off with.







They're a 1 star team and expected to finish 50th overall and 13th in Championship Group C. This league is a league with 71 teams split into 4 groups with the top 2 from each group moving onto the next stage to determine who gets promoted.

As Manuel was introduced as the new manager of Oleiros, a reporter from The Oleiros Football Post asked most of the questions:


'Manuel, you're a complete unknown in the world of football, what do you say to the fans of this club, as well as in Portugal in general about why you're the best man for the job?'

'Well yes I am an unknown but everyone has to start somewhere right? you may not know my name right now, but believe me you'll soon be saying I'm the best manager Portugal has ever produced'

 'That's quite a bold statement, considering that arguably the greatest manager of all time Jose Mourinho is still very much an active manager, as is Jorge Jesus, a very well respected Portuguese manager, not to mention Andre Villas-Boas who is held in very high regards in the footballing community'

'Mourinho, Jesus & Villas-Boas? Never heard of em! But you will know who Manuel Vargas is with time, and 1 day, some day I will lead Sporting Lisbon to glory, mark my words!'

The journey begins.....

Good luck Matt, this'll be good!

So the first game of the journey and hopefully a hall of fame career sees us at home to AD Nogueirense




What a performance we got. 6-1 was the full time score but the game was over after 40 minutes as we went into half time 5 nil up!



Next up were Sertanense away and another dominating performance saw us put 5 past them and win the game 5-1. Vilmar grabbing 4 goals in a dominating performance.



Can you believe what happened next, as we put yet another 5 goals away this time at home to Trofense who were no match for our team.



Game number 4 of our career and this time wasn't quite as many but we did put 4 goals past Macoa to take us to the top of the league.



Back to back draws now as we were held 0-0 away to Sintrense and managed a 1 all draw away to Sporting Ideal in the cup, however we beat them on penalties to go into the hat for the next round.



Back to league action and we grabbed a deserved 3-0 win over Santa Iria.



A narrow 1-0 victory over Fafe saw our good start continue.



The draw for the next round of the cup and I couldn't be happier. Alright it's an away draw but the money we'll get from the game against top side Maritimo will definitely help us out. A game I am very much looking forward to!





Despite our good start we went down 2-1 away to Anadia in a game we were absolutely dominated against. How this match ended only 2-1 I'll never know, definitely the worse performance so far.



2 more poor performances as we were held 0-0 away to Lourse in a pretty even game really, and then went down 3-1 to Vilafranquense. This game made me tear my hair out. We went 2 down before getting a penalty which Chico missed but managed to pull 1 back almost straight after. We bossed the game from there and had a good couple of half chances before they got the third goal to put the game away.



During all this it's confirmed the England will leave the EU. I take it that's the Brexit thing kicking in then. Not sure how much it will impact this save unless I go to England but we'll see.



League table looking good for a team expected to struggle. Question is can we improve on this continuing into the season



We've done well so far and find ourselves sitting 4th in group C. I'm optimistic we can continue this form and challenge the top end of the league.

That's it for this update. I'll try and get updates as often as I can. I am thinking I will post in game monthly updates and highlight anything relevant..

Thank's for reading!

Hey man cheers, hope you'll be following!

Slightly back down to earth following that incredible start, still going well though!

One small thing, could you make the game screenshots bigger? For the results they are OK as you can see the scoreline, but with the league table it's difficult to make it out. Best of luck!

Yeah it's gone well so far, especially considering we're meant to be battling at the bottom end of the league.

As for the screenshots thing, not sure why they are so small, they were the right size when I uploaded them, I'll look into it.

ARC Oleiros season 2018 - 19 update

For this update I'm just going to do an overview of each month and the results. From the end of the season I'll have a more in depth and better review of the matches. The screenshots I have for the end of the season I had snipped down and when I uplaoded them they were really small, however I will upload them again tonight without cropping them so they should be easier to read.


After the away defeat to Vilafranquense we went on to win 2 and draw 1 before our big cup game with Maritimo. That game was over after 10 minutes as they went 2 up early on. Not too disheartened at that result however as we can now concentrate on the league.



December saw us brought back down to earth as we were embarrassed 5-0 away to Fatima. This result was totally unacceptable and very much not expected. We bounced backed with a 2-0 win at home to Torreense before a 2 all away draw with Oliveira. Another 5 nil away battering to Alverca followed before 2 big wins over Benfica CB who were top of the league at that paoint and Caldas who were second.




A good month by all accounts saw us win 5 and draw 1. All good performances and we really put the league on notice here. Hopefully we can continue this good form.



Following on from that great month we dropped points to Vilafranquense (at least they didn’t beat us again) and a terrible game away to Alcains. We picked up a much needed 3 points at home to Peniche to round out the month.

March – April 2019

2 wins in March followed by back to back losses taking us into Arpil before grabbing a massive 6-0 win and back to back 1-0 victories mean we finish the league campaign as league leaders.



So the league ends there with us finishing first in the league and heading into the play offs. I know knock out football is totally different so we’re going to have to be at our best if we’re to get through the play offs. We weren’t meant to be finishing anywhere near the top of the league so on the one hand I’m happy where we’ve finished as we have definitely over achieved, but on the other hand I won’t lie I’d be disappointed if we didn’t make it to the final. All our hard work and good results have led us to this point. Am I excited, yes! Nervous, yes! Do I think we can go on to win, you're damn right!!





Next update will be how we got on in the play offs.

Thanks for reading!

Quite the double-header of results versus Alverca and Benfica CB! Got the job that was getting to the play-offs done, good luck in them.

Yeah for sure, Benfica were the favourites to finish first in our group too. Main thing for me was to be competitive this season, getting this far is an absolute bonus. Hoping for a good showing in the play offs.

Compeonato do Portugal play offs
Quarter Final

We get underway in the first leg of the playoffs away to Vizela. As they finished second in Serie A we’ve not actually played this team yet.


The game was pretty much back to walls stuff for the most part. We actually took the lead but were pegged back from there. We managed to get in to half time at 1 all. Second half they came out strong and deserved their second gaol. They could’ve added more however we managed to get an equaliser ten minutes before the end. Genuinely jumped out my seat at that equaliser as the away goals rule is in effect in the play offs so that goal could really mean something come the second leg.



The second leg was a different game altogether. This was a pretty even game all round, but we managed to bury 1 of chances to take the game 1-0, 3-2 on aggregate. Don’t get me wrong, Vizela had some good chances but we managed to keep them out. We’re into the semi-final!







We’re up against Olhanense in the semi final an the less said about this game the better really. We never looked like creating anything an at this point out play off run looks to be over. A miracle is what we need in the second leg.



We needed a miracle and a miracle is just what we got! Despite us being pretty evenly matched all game we managed to take 3 of our chances to finish the game 3-0 and 3-3 on aggregate. We just needed 1 goal to go through, but Olhanese managed to get a goal in extra time after Vilmar was given a straight red card. Game over I thought no way can come back from this. As soon as that goal went in we just went route 1 all out attack and some how, despite the odds we managed to grab another goal, 4-1!!! We’re only in the final!!





Well we’ve made it, just. We up against Serie A team Fafe in the final. A game if we win we’re into the next division. I’ll admit getting this far was never expected however to get this close to promotion is exciting, I just hope we don’t bottle it. We’ve got goals in our team, but we’ve also leaked a few goals as well.



I tell the team there’s no pressure, absolutely none at all and to just go out and play their natural game. I won't lie, I wasn’t expecting this, but the result was never ever in doubt! We went behind early on as I say we’ve leaked some goals this season, but we responded excellently and deserved this absolutely amazing result!

















That brings an end to Manuel’s first season as a manager, and what a season! Obviously there is going to be a massive difference in the players in the next divisions and we’ll do well to stay up, but with a few good performances and results, who knows what will happen! Hopefully this is just the start of more success to come, everyone has to start somewhere and for Manuel he’s started well and will look to continue this success.

Next update will be end of season stuff, predictions for next season as well as a look at the squad.

Thanks for reading!

‘Manuel, what are your thoughts on over achieving and gaining an unexpected promotion?’

‘Well firstly it wasn’t unexpected. I always had fait that we could at least challenge at the top end of the league. This promotion was totally deserved. That’s it for questions today thank you’

Manuel knew fine well they had over achieved. Very much so, in fact he knows it’s going to be a massive struggle gaining points in this division never mind staying in it. He needs a plan, he needs something that the team will stick to. What was it his assistant had said, back to back, no that wasn’t it. Back to basics! YES! That was it, back to basics. There’s going to be some quality players playing in Ledman Liga Pro, Portugal’s second division so we need to be able put them under some sort of pressure, we’ve not got technical quality and we’re not going to attract top level players just yet, but we do have committed players that will give their all.

The team report back to pre season training, and Manuel has a few words to say:
‘Right lads, first things first. We know it’s going to be a struggle staying up this season but I have faith in you, and with a couple of signings I genuinely think we can stay up’

Little reaction from the squad, however Vilmar, last seasons top scorer had something to say

‘The boss is right lads, a few good results and we can pull this off, just make sure to get the ball to me and I’ll do the rest’

‘That’s the spirit Vilmar my man! Right here’s how we’re setting up next season. We’re not going to out play most teams so I’m going to channel my inner Tony Pulis and when we get the ball I want us to get it up to the attack as quickly as possible. As long as we all give 100% we can’t say we didn’t try’

Manuel demonstrates to the team exactly what he wants and how they’re going to play







Before pre season friendlies kick off, the club announced an expansion to the stadium, as well as me gaining an extension to my contract and confirmation of winning the Compeonato de Portugal manager of the year award.







Season preview sees us finishing bottom of the league, as well as having Fafe, who be beat in the play off final to get in this league finishing above us. Not sure why or how they also got promoted though.



We start the season off away to Mafra and our first home game is against Porto B team. I can’t wait to get started





We also get confirmation of 6 signings, with Miotti, Pinto & Chen all signing on after being on loan with us last season. Not sure why it says these signings were made by the previous manager, Chen & Pinto were definitely signed by me however Miotti was already at the club, bizarre.





So let’s meet the team Manuel is putting his faith in stay up this year. The following is our first 11 and subs, obviously you can’t accommodate for injuries or suspensions but here they are:

Goalkeeper Gabriel Miotti, played most games in our promotion season and a steady hand



Right full back Diogo Gaspar, new signing and although natural at right winger I feel he can do a job at right back



Center halves Tiago Gomes & Saliu Djalo, both first teamers last season I have every faith they can continue their good for from last year





Left full back Charles, Mr dependable from last year as he was 1 of stand out players. I have every faith in him to do well this year.



Right midfield Leonel, another new signing. Although natural on the left, I am going to have him cutingin from the right and with his pace and flair he may just do the job



Center midfielders Jimmy & Abraham Duverger. Not the best stats but last season they did well together. I have no doubt they’ll impress this year





Left midfield Chico Chen, my first ever singing. Covered both left midfield and left back last year, he will be able to get quality balls into the box I’m sure



Forwards Ibrahim Gbadamosi & Vilamr. Gbadamosi is a new signing and VIlamr was last seasons top scorere with 35. I’m hoping Gbadamosi’s height will get some knock downs for Vilamr to bury.





That’s our first 11. Our subs look like this:

Goalkeeper Luis Serra, right full back Andre Farinha, midfielder Bruno Carvalho, wingers Dontaye Whittaker, Adewale Sapara & Leo Pinto, forward Rafael Victor.















I have toyed with the idea of playing Farinha at right back instead of Gaspar, however for the first game at least Gaspar will start, and with that everything is sorted. We're in for a long season, however I have faith in this team. We'll see exactly what these players, and Manuel Vargas are really made of come the start of the season.



Thanks for reading.

Scenes! Congrats on the promotion!

Cheers mate. Hopefully more success to come. Gonna play over the weekend and get an update up either Sunday evening or Monday morning.

ARC Olerios 2019 - 20 season

‘Right lads, how are we all feeling for the upcoming season?’

A few murmurs, nothing stood out though. The players seem relaxed, a little too relaxed actually.

‘Look, we all know it’s going to be a long season ahead, but I have every confidence we can compete and stay in the division this season. It’s not mission impossible, it is however mission difficult but if you listen to my ideas and plans I firmly believe we can stay up’

‘’The boss is right, if we all give 100% we can definitely stay up’ Charles, our first choice left back said to the group.

‘Thanks Charles. Right targets. Last season Farense stayed in this league with 39 points, ideally we don’t want to say if or when we hit that we’re safe. But ultimately we may even be safe with less points than 39, but don’t think we can get complacent at all, this is a tough league!



Just before the season starts new signing Leonel is out with sprained ligaments for a few weeks, not the best news to start our season off with but we’ll make do with what we have.



Before the season starts is the first round of the Allianz Cup which we weren’t in last season but we are now as we’re in a higher league, and we’re drawn against the team we beat in the play off final Fafe. I was expecting a win but it just wasn’t meant to be. Oh well me move on.







Pre season odds sees us propping the league up and heading straight back down. It’s up to us to put in the effort every game and do our best to stay up. I am confident we can stay up but I know just how tough it is going to be.



We start the season off away to Mafra. This was a pretty even game and we took an early lead and managed to hold on for a win in our first game in the Ligapro. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come.



Could not believe what happened next as we managed to beat Porto’s B team 2-0 in our first home game of the new season. They were the better team through out but we managed to take our chances and claim back to back victories. I couldn’t be happier with this start!



But we were brought right back down to earth by title favourites Paco Ferrira who beat us 2-0. They dominated the game throughout and we were lucky it only stayed 2-0



We were at home to Farense next and this game would’ve had me tearing my hair out if I were the Farense manager. Just look at those stats. We were lucky, VERY lucky to win this one.





Last game in August saw us snatch a 2-2 draw away to Penafiel, with Chen burying a chance deep into stoppage time.





With transfer deadline day here we made 1 more singing, experienced midfielder Domagoj Duspara. He will start most games and I think he can definitely help us stay up this year.







Confirmation of the draw for the cup and we’re playing Moura away in the second round.



Terrible, absolutely terrible game against Chaves next as not only were we battered 3-1, new signing Duspara lasted 21 minutes before coming off with an injury that will keep him out for around 6 weeks. Not good news at all.





Next up was a pretty even game and it ended 0-0 with Varzim. We didn’t lose so I do see this as 1 point gained and not 2 dropped.



The cup game against Moura was next and we battered them 3-1 to send us into the next round. A good all round performance and we definitely deserved this win.



We get drawn against top division team Tondela in the next round, and the game is at home so hopefully we get a decent crowd backing us.



A loss to Cova da Piedad in the league preceded the cup game with Tondela which we also lost. The Tondela game we were the better team but just didn’t take our chances. They’re a premier league team so we shouldn’t be too disheartened with this defeat as we played well. On another day we might have won.





After these 3 games we had back to back defeats to Viseu and Benfica B team which brought some criticism from the fans regarding tactics.









Okay so we aren’t playing well but to say it’s down to tactics alone is a bit harsh, however I am willing to experiment and after consulting the coaches decide it’s time for a change. We have decided to go with a 4-1-4-1 variant.





So we’ve lost 6 on the bounce now and morale is dropping. Hopefully with this new set up we can kick off November with at the very least some good performances. I haven’t lost faith in this team I just hope the players are still confident. There's still a long way to go and plenty of time to get more points on the board. A silver lining would be we've managed to win some games and not prop the league up as was expected, so I'm happy in that regard.

Next update will only be a short one and will cover the next set of games using our new tactic. Thanks for reading!

Tough run of form, not helped by the Duspara injury. Hopefully the new tactic pays off!

Yeah it is what it is mate, I'll be getting an update up shortly showing the new tactic and how we got on

ARC Oleiors 2019 - 20 season update

So we’re setting up with a new tactic and it paid off big time as we ran out 2-0 winners over Moreirenese. 2 early goals saw us run out deserved winners.











Another dominating victory this time 3-0 over Leixoes, this could’ve been more as we even missed a penalty but this new set up seems to be working.



After those 2 games I’m awarded manager of the month. Cool.



Back to the league and we managed another win, 2-0 away to Fafe who are now rooted to the bottom of the league. 3 games with a new tactic gives us 3 wins and I couldn’t be happier!





We were brought right back down to earth with an absolutely shocking 4-0 home loss to Covilha. No point discussing this shambles any more.



We do redeem ourselves as we come from 2 down to win 3-2 away to Santa Clara. A great second half from us and this is the type of performance we should be building on.





Oh well. Back to back losses to Famalicao & Arouca followed that great second half at Santa Clara although we didn’t deserve anything from either game.







Just after the Arouce game I’m invited to an interview at bottom of the table Fafe, you know the team we beat in the play offs to get promoted (still don’t understand how they got promoted as well) and team that knocked us out of the Allianz Cup, nah you’re alright thank you. Moving on.



Transfer window time and we make just 1 singing, center half Lassina Toure from Limianos. This is mainly due to Saliu Djallo moaning that he wants to leave to join Valenciennes which I said he could at the end of the season.







Back to back 3-0 victories in January over Mafra & Porto B (we’ve done the double over them both this season!) and a disappointing 2-0 home to loss to league leaders Paco Ferreira (who have done the double over us!) mean it was a good, if not great month considering where we’re expected to be. I’m happy with how we’ve done, considering we’re 8th(!) in the league and not looking like relegation fodder, consistency is an issue however but I’m sure we can stay up this year.









We round out this update with 2 injuries, first choice right back Gaspar is out for up to 7 weeks and center half Hugo Obama is out for up to 8 weeks. Injuries are part and parcel of football so hopefully we’ve got enough about us to not let this hamper us too much.





Finally I’m wanted by 2 clubs, notably Chaves who were relegated from the Liga Nos and Leixoes who we recently beat 3-0. I won’t be declaring my interest, if they’re serious about me they can come to me.



Thanks for reading!

Some first season in the end mate, defying those odds. Looks like the form is very ropey at the moment but just need to turn a couple of those defeats into draws and pick up the odd extra point!

That's my main concern the consistency, or lack thereof. We're very susceptible to letting in the odd goal or 3 but with Toure coming in we won the 2 he started and the only loss was to the league leaders so I'm not too disheartened at that loss. Onwards and upwards from here.

We get confirmation from the board of the expansion to the stadium. It’s all progress I suppose.



We then end January off in 8th place in the league. For me this is absolutely brilliant as we were never expected to be this high at all so all being well we can finish up this end of the league. Our first game of the final 14 sees us earn a 1-0 away win over Farense which sees their manager sacked straight after this game, more on that later. During the game left winger Pinto suffered a pulled muscle which will rule him out for upto 4 weeks. Whilst disappointed we do have cover on the flanks so hopefully we won’t miss him too much.







A 0-0 draw at home to Penafiel wasn’t much to write home about however another injury during this game and it’s a big one, Chico Chen who has played in most games this season broke his leg and is out for nearly a year. I am absolutely gutted at this, there are no words. Get well soon Chico.







We then somehow came away with a 2-0 win at Chaves in a game where we had 2 chances and took them despite being the second best all over the pitch. Any other game this could’ve been a totally different result. Happy with the win mind.



Remember when I said Farense sacked their manager after losing to us? Well they offered me an interview, however now is not the time for me to leave Oleiros so I politely declined.



Another 2-0 victory followed, this time at home to Varzim. A good win and performance to boot, it’s looking more and more likely we’re going to be staying up this year!



Following 2 wins we lost our next game to Cova de Piedade. Not much to say here we were bad and didn’t deserve anything from the game.



Back to winning ways as we beat Viseu 2-0 at home. Then we get confirmation of an injury to center half Toure which coincidently sees go on a poor run which sees us lose games to Benfica’s B team (5-1), Moreirense (3-1) & Leixoes (2-1) before grabbing a vital 5-1 home win over Fafe.













The Fafe game meant we were mathematically safe from relegation, mission accomplished! As well as that Paco Ferreira confirmed they’d be playing in the higher league next season



The final 4 games of our season saw us lose 3 and draw 1. The first being a 3-1 loss away to Covilha, 3-0 at home to Santa Clara, a 0-0 draw with Famalicao before the season closing 3-0 defeat to Arouca which saw them crowned champions.









After that poor end of season un I’m glad we managed to get points on the board early and get enough to see us finish 10th in the league.







The 10th place finish is an absolutely fantastic achievement for a team expected to finish bottom of the league, I couldn’t be happier with how this season has gone.

Next update is going to be who got relegated from the top league, end of season awards and what the future holds for Manuel Vargas.

Thanks for reading!

(Em bom português, que excelente trabalho !!)

First season went up and now in the second season I think it was very good.
Here at the end of the season there were many defeats, which changed what could be a big surprise but, I do not take back the feat you made. I hope that next season you get the first league.

Boa Sorte Mate

Meu portuguese nao tao bom assim, mas obrigada!

I was worried we might slip up with quite a few heavy defeats but we managed some great results of our own. Depending on what happens during the off season, which I'll post later today or tomorrow, we may make moves to improve on this good season or I may move on depending on what jobs are out there. Whilst I've got no problem staying, there might just be an opportunity too good to turn down

Classic example of the players on their holidays mentally when expectations are met! Interesting to see what comes next.

That was definitely the case, whilst we struggled in the last 10 or so games the team only played well against bottom of the league Fafe, although that did confirm we stayed up, we could've maybe done better dare I say! We'll see what happens now in terms of what jobs are out there and what players we can attract.

Id say that ended up being a pretty good season following the promotion last year mate.

Cheers mate. Definitely a good season considering we were meant to finish bottom of the league. Will see what happens now the season has finished.

We start this update with what happened in Liga NOS, and Boavista made the headlines for all the wrong reasons. They are a decent size club and last season finished just above the relegation place and this season went all the way to going down.



This is interesting as they are interested in me becoming their manager. This would be a big step up for me if it happens however just like the last time I was wanted I won’t be actively pursuing this so I am going to let it play itself out.



End of season stuff now and it’s confirmed this is the clubs highest ever finish something I am very proud of! As well it’s confirmed we’re the seasons over achievers, I’d go along with that.





Duspara getting signing & player of the year, can’t say I’m too surprised he was definitely 1 of my main guys this season



Also 1 part of my personal achievements as I am now favoured personnel at ARC Olerios.



Confirmation the board are also happy, and so they should be. 1 thing that is slightly concerning is my job security, I would’ve thought with getting the club promoted in my first season when we were expected to be near the bottom as well as a good mid table finish this year when again we were expected to finish bottom would’ve made my job a lot more secure than it is. Not to worry though I aren’t overly concerned by this.



Quick update on 1 of Manuel’s idols Jorge Jesus and he has been offered the Schalke job after leaving Saudi side Al-Hilal. If / when he is confirmed I’ll post his career stats up to now.



Then this pops up. Not going to lie I am extremely happy and nervous about this.



Could it be happening….





We’re linked to center midfielder Sergio Duarte, I’ll scout him and see what the report says, if a deal can be struck I may pursue this one.





This season’s preview has us rooted to the bottom of the league, again. Well it’s up to us to show last season wasn’t a fluke and that we can repeat with a good finish. Boavista rightly so favourites to go straight back up.



The first game of the season is the first round of the Allianz cup but just before then we made 3 singings. First up is left back Sergio Akieme. I’ve brought him as it is looking ever so likely first choice left back Charles is leaving us for Paco Ferriere who got promoted. Not the best going forward but is at least on par with Charles in terms of defensive capabilities



Next up is Croatian center half Andrej Causic. He’s got rotation player written all over him however I am confident he can produce some good performances when we need them.





First choice goalkeeper Miotto didn’t renew his contract so there was an opening there and we filled it by signing Kadu on a free. Hopefully he can get us some of the clean sheets that were lacking last season. Definite improvement on Miotti and I’m happy to have him here.









A so-so pre season and now we’re at the first game, the first round of the Allianz cup at home to Covilha. This was a game we absolutely dominated and at 1 point I thought we weren’t going to get the break through. We did get a goal that was ruled out for offside* but we kept plugging away, despite their keeping having a blinding game we managed to get 2 late goals to put us in to the next round. I’m happy with this and hopefully we can take this type of performance into our league games.



That’s it for this update, next update will be the first round of games in our second season in Liga Pro and if anything else happened. Thanks for reading.




*the goal went in then almost straight away the text at the bottom said the ref was going to the VAR assistant but the game just said the goal was ruled out for offside, it was offside but there was no animation or anything like that, weird.

Unfortunate with the Boavista interview, that would've been a good next move... but staying with Oleiros isn't a bad thing, get to continue what you started.