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tongey
Hello to you all. I'm hoping that this career will last me a long long time, but I won't promise you that, purely because I know these saves promise a lot, but then flitter out, especially with me at the helm but I will give this my best shot. I've tried this challenge a couple of times before on previous versions of FM and I'm back to do so again on FM18. I have no real plan for the save but the aim is to win every trophy available on the game.
I've decided to start in the region that all good backpacker travellers go to: Asia, now of course I've started with no football experience and no football coaching qualifications which will make the challenge even harder than it already is but we shall see how it goes.
MANAGERIAL HISTORY:
TROPHY CABINET:
COUNTRIES CONQUERED
Africa
N/A
Asia
Europe
North America
N/A
South America
tongey
FINDING MY FEET IN ASIA
After packing up my belongings and cramming them into what seemed like the smallest backpack around I was ready to begin my travels. I had decided that Singapore would be my base as they spoke English as their main language and I wouldn't be in too much of a stress when searching for jobs. I was sat in the bar on the top of the SuperTree in Gardens by the Bay when I got an email from my agent which stated that the following jobs were available.
Two in the Indian football pyramid. 3 in the Indonesian footballing pyramid, one in the Malaysian and one in the Chinese. I wouldn't mind starting at any of these so I've applied for them all...
The first to get back to me were Henan, the only Chinese representative and it wasn't good news. I'm not surprised, I haven't got any coaching qualifications or footballing background so why would they want to hire me.
It was good news from the others though. I had got an interview for no less than 5 teams and I spent the rest of that evening prepping for some of the biggest days of my footballing life so far.
DNZY
Dan
tongey
As always @Dan, many thanks!
DESTINATION SARAWAK
I'd done it, I'd managed to go and get my first ever job in football management in the lovely country of Malaysia. Sarawak were the team to bestow this honour on me and I'm excited to bring my own brand of football to this wonderful team.
The Team
The squad is a decent size and I think I can work some magic with what I've got available to me. I have a very strong spine of the team with: Milos Raickovic my Montenegrin centre midfield player being the best of the bunch. Behind him is the rock at the back, Brazilian born Demerson who brings a wealth of experience to the team. The main hope for goals lie in 30 year old Mateo Roskam who hails from Croatia. These three will be crucial to my hopes of finishing towards the top end of the league.
TinakoFM
tongey
Following on from my last post which told you all that I had taken the reigns of my first club: The mighty Sarawak who play their football in the Malaysian Premier League (not quite the top league, but the equivalent of the Championship). Unfortunately one of my star players Milos Raickovic's contract ran out a month into the season and he decided he didn't want to stay at the club as we didn't meet his ambitions. Out he went and in came Mohd Fauzan Dzulkifli who will replace him in the middle of the park.
The season started with 2 straight defeats, mainly in part to the fact that I hadn't found myself a tactic that worked yet, and another part down to the strength of teams we faced. Johor DT II are predicted to win the league and Sime Darby are also predicted to be up there. Our first win came in the FA cup where we sailed through on penalties against a team in the league above. League form has picked up since then with 5 wins dotted in between a number of draws and only the one loss since then. I'm pretty happy with how we've started in the league. As I predicted Mateo Roskam leads the way in the scoring charts with 5 and our CB Demerson has nabbed 4 for himself.
This league form has led me to be in 3rd place at the half way stage which is exactly where we are expected to finish. I believe we can win this division though with the quality we have. We just need that run of form towards the end of the season. We lie only 6 points behind the leaders and only 1 behind second place. It's a pretty close division and I could finish pretty much anywhere but let's hipe it's towards the top.
tongey
It's been quite a while since I updated this series, and thats because of a mixture of reasons. First of all I was on my holidays for 2 weeks and then the Christmas season hit so here I am finally updating you all on my first season in Malaysia. It turned out to be quite a season in charge and I've fallen in love with my Sarawak team. It's a league that I've never managed in before so to test my skills in a new league has been fun and refreshing. Anyway enough of that, onto how we did...
Malaysian Premier League
What a remarkable end to the season. We hit form at the right time and won 9 out of the 11 games we played in the league. I've never had an unbeaten run that long in my time on football manager. The greatest game right at the end when we beat Polis DRM 6-5 with a winner in the 96th minute. As predicted at the start of the season Mateo Roksam was the star talent upfront netting 18 time in the league alone and came 2nd in the golden boot award. Unfortunately he doesn't want to renew his contract so will be leaving us shortly. The emergence of Dalglish Papin was a nice surprise as he wowed the crowds near the end of the season when I promoted him from the reserves. Where did this fine run of form leave us at the end of the season.
WE FINISHED 2ND!! A fine achievement for Sarawak who were predicted to finish one place further down the league. It came down to the final match but we needed Johor DT II to lose their game and they were at one point. Unfortunately for us a late equalised for them gave them the point they needed. Johor DT II have their main team already playing in the super league so they cannot be promoted which basically means I am the top team to go up (I'll take that a league completed and one ticked off). 22 games played, 14 wins, 5 draws and 3 losses is not a bad record in any books.
Malaysia FA Cup
Our form didn't follow us into the FA Cup but success was never really on the cards. A win on penalties against a higher ranked Selangor was a huge upset and one that I'll savour in this first season. We were ultimately knocked out by N Sembilan which is quite disappointing as they finished below us in the league. It let us focus on the league though which is a good thing.
Malaysia Cup
The Malaysia Cup proved a bit better for us than the FA Cup. We managed to progress from the group after finishing in top spot. 3 wins and 3 draws was enough to help us on the way. It wasn't to be though as we came up against the eventual winners Terenggaru in the first knockout round. They were a class above really and we didn't really compete but our eyes were firmly on the league at this point which didn't help matters.
TEAM STATS
NEXT UPDATE: Midway through 2019 Season.
tongey
I got a message half way through pre season saying that the Malaysia Under 23s job was available so I thought that I would chance my luck and see what happens. Turns out Ramlan Rashid is a fan of my work and offered me the job. I'll be taking control of the squad through the upcoming Under 23 Asian Cup Qualification.
I'm hoping that I can expand my knowledge of the young players coming through and sign some of them to my squad.
tongey
Having been promoted back to the Malaysian Super League last time round, I came into the season expecting us to battle for a mid table finish. Many of my key players from last season decided to leave and try their luck elsewhere but we managed to bring in some new players to replace them. Last years top goalscorer Roskam decided to leave and so the team was in need of a goalscorer. This dity has fallen to 23 year old Ramlee. Finances at the club at stretched really thin and we're over 500,000 in the red which means my transfer and wage budgets are severely lacking. I've kept good control over the wage budget but it's a non money making league really so we're struggling.
The squad has actually got a bit bigger than last year as I decided to promote a few of the under 23s up into the main squad to provide a battle for each position. Mohd Faulzan Dzulkilfli leads the way in the average rating department with a staggering 7.57 having chipped in with 2 goals and 3 assists in 16 appearances for the club this season. Nur Shamie Iszuan Amin has the most assists with 7 and the goals have been scored mostly by Nor Azizi Ramlee who has 15 in 14 appearances. Last year he scored 1 in 9 throughout the whole season.
LEAGUE CAMPAIGN
As you can see, we are 11 games into the season which means we are at the halfway point. Our form has been quite ridiculous considering we are the new boys in the league. We have 8 wins out of the 11, with only 1 loss which was a last minute winner and a game we should have won really. Our defence has been magnificent only conceding in 3 of the 11 games. Not quite sure what happened to the defence in the 4-3 victory against Perak but I'll let them off with the blip. We've been consistently scoring goals and only twice we have't found the back of the net. A massive win against Felda Utd who had offered me the managers role in pre season only for me to reject it, stood out as the best result. They sat top of the league but we dominated from start to finish and ran out 4-0 winners.
This left us top of the pile after 11 games. A staggering achievement and hopefully we can kick on and maintain the form throughout the 2nd half. Johor DT are in 2nd place, 3 points behind us so beating them is the key objective for us. I'm still in shock really at how well we've been able to perform.
Malaysian FA Cup
The FA Cup takes part in the 1st half of the season which adds a huge amount of games if you progress quite far as we did. We had quite an easy path to the semi finals really and didn't really have any difficulties. I tried to rotate the squad a fair bit giving all of the fringe players a game in the early rounds. When we faced our old rivals Johor DT II in the semis I put a few more familiar faces back into the line up which didn't really pay dividends. To go out on away goals is a killer in a game we should of really won. Looks like I will have to have another season in Malaysia to tick the FA Cup off.
Next Update: End of Season 2019
tongey
We left it at the half way stage of the 2019 season with the last update and we were 11 games in. 11 games to go and also the Malaysia Cup to play. Ramlee was leading the goalscoring charts for the league and we were performing really really well. Did we manage to hold on? Well first of all we had a takeover which meant my job was under pressure but the new board came in and were impressed with me so kept me on and offered me a new contract which I signed straight away. They also injected the club with some much needed funds so hopefully now I can take my first coaching qualification which the previous chairman stopped me doing because of funds.
League Campaign
We played the remainder of the 11 games in the Super League and won a very impressive 7 of those. We lost 2 of those as well and drew the remaining 2 games which means our form wasn't quite as good as the 1st half of the season but nevertheless it was still impressive. The important match that I said in the last update was against Johor DT ended up being a 1-1 draw which was a good result really. They looked like winning all the way until an own goal drew us level and we escaped with a point. It all came down to the final day when we were level on points with Johor DT but on top with our goal difference being 4 goals better off. We managed to win 5-0 against Perak whilst Johor DT lost 2-0 to Kedah which meant one thing!!
WE HAD WON THE SUPER LEAGUE AT THE FIRST TIME OF ASKING! A REMARKABLE ACHIEVEMENT!
Malaysia Cup
The Malaysia Cup always takes part in the 2nd half of the season and is a group stage followed by a knockout tournament. We were drawn in a group with Kedah, PBDKT, and Selangor whom all play in the Super League alongside me so it wasn't as easy a draw as I was hoping. We nevertheless won 5 out of the 6 matches with a rotated squad once again. We only conceded 3 times in the group stage which no doubt helped us on our way to the 1/4 finals where we faced Felda Utd. Two very exciting games followed with the first ended 1-1 and the 2nd game was a 5-4 thriller. They got the goal that would have put them through in the 89th minute which meant that I was going out on away goals once again. Up stepped golden boy Dominic Tan to blast in a goal from the edge of the area to send us through. Melaka provided a test in the 1st leg as it ended 1-1 but we overpowered them in the 2nd as we came out 2-0 winners. The final was a tense afair as it was the leagues number 1 team vs the leagues number 2. I've had some good games against Johor DT and this was no different. It came down to penalties and we stayed calm and took our penalties well. It was 2 trophies in a matter of days for the Sarawak boys.
Individual Awards
Nor Azizi Ramlee grabbed the Super League's Golden Boot notching up 18 goals in 21 appearances in the league campaign. He also picked up the Most Promising Player
I was awarded with Manager of the Year as well which is always a nice award to receiver. The first of many I hope...
Team Performance
Mohd Faulzan Dzulkifli was the outstanding performer all season really notching up an average rating of 7.42 in 37 appearances. He chipped in with 4 goals and 6 assists which is an improvement on last season.
Nor Azizi Ramlee was the top goalscorer in all competitions too with 33 goals in 35 appearances. That's an impressive tally in any league. Could he come with me for my whole career when I decide to move on?
Nur Shamie Iszuan Amin lead the assist charts with 15. His creativity down the wing was wonderful to watch and no doubt helped Ramlee to most of his collection.
tongey
The new season has come around really quickly, probably helped by the fact that I had the Under 23s Asian Cup in the middle of the off season of which we made the 1/4 finals finally getting beaten by Japan Under 23s. Our group consisted of Oman Under 23s,Qatar Under 23s, and China Under 23s. We managed confident wins against Oman and Qatar but lost to China which left us in 2nd place in the group. Japan truly outclassed us as they should and we crashed out at that stage.
Some more good news before the season starts is that the board finally let me start my coaching qualifications. Lets hope this is the start of things to come.
Anyway, I made few transfers with the limited money that I had to help strengthen an already strong squad.
Transfers IN
Nur Najmi Iman Shahruddin
Shahruddin comes into the squad and will slot straight in as the number one centre half alongside Awang Chek who is the number one right now. I have high hopes these two will form a strong partnership. He has strong positioning and strong decision making attributes which will lend themselves to him becoming a strong leader at the back.
Nasir Shamsudin
I purely signed Nasir as a prospect for the future. He will slot straight into the Under 21s team and play his football there all season unless he really performs well and impresses me. He has a high star potential and I have high hopes for him.
Charity Shield
I didn't actually know there was a Charity Shield competition in Malaysia until the news came up that I had won it. I think that I won it by default because I won the league and cup double last season. Does this count towards my total? I think so. I'll list it for now anyway. I'll take a trophy when it comes as easy as that.
tongey
It's only been a few months into the new season but my time in charge of Sarawak has come to an end. I only needed the one trophy coming into this season and well, I've gone and won it. The Malaysian FA Cup was the only thing standing in my way.
First up was an away trip to Sabah and we comfortably dispatched them with a 2-0 victory. Ramlee got his customary goal along with youngster Amin who has been brought up to the squad due to an injury crisis in the left wing department. Felda Utd were up next in the 3rd round and once again it was a 2-0 win. It was then onto our old rivals Johor DT II in a 2 legged quarter final. 2-0 was the score in the first leg and to be honest it was over after that. We went into the 2nd leg in a comfortable position and just controlled the game and won it 1-0.
We already knew our opponents before the previous round and it was the bigger brother of our previous victims. Johor DT. The real threat to us in the league and other cups as well. I wasn't too confident really as they are still the top team in Malaysian football. A 1-1 draw in the first leg gave us a crucial away goal but nothing could separate us at 120 minutes in the 2nd leg. Penalties were to be used. My players calmly stood there after both teams missed the first penalty. 3-1 the final score from penalties. Into the final we went.
WE WON THE FINAL. 3-1 THE FINAL SCORE.
and with that, my time in Sarawak is over. I've loved every minute of being here but as it's a journeyman career it's time to move on. If it wasn't then I'd gladly stay but it's onto the next country now. Who knows where that'll be.
tongey
I've been without a job for a few months after resigning from Sarawak. I had applied for a few jobs in a few different Asian leagues ranging from China to Indonesia. Unfortunately none of those clubs wanted me and the search continued. It wasn't until the Mohun Bagan job came available that I was interested in a team again. I immediately applied for the job and hoped that I would get an offer of an interview which I did. I must have aced it because within a week they had offered me the job and I was on my way.
Mohun Bagan have just finished their season and ended up winning the league by 5 points so I'm not too sure why they sacked their manager. I'm hoping to be here for a short amount of time and to tick India of reasonably quickly. We shall see how it pans out though.
tongey
Before the league even starts in India, the Durand Cup competition kicks off so what better way to get to know my squad than a good old fashion tournament. We were drawn in Group B alongside Moonlight, Mumbai FC, Mohammedan, Shivajians, and Aizawl FC. We had been made favourites for the competition which added to the pressure that I was under. I had also just signed former favourite of mine Nor Azizi Ramlee and was hoping he would make an instant impact. According to the rules in India, you can't have more than 2 international players in the 11 at one time so Ramlee was going to be my impact sub from the bench.
Jackichand Singh grabbed the winner in his first game for the club when we beat Moonlight in our first game. It was a dull affair to be honest but 3 points on the board is nothing to be turned down.
Pierrick (our star centre forward) was the MOM as we ran out 3-0 winners against Mumbai FC. Ramlee also got his first for the club in this game which pleased me.
In the game against our bitter rivals Mohammedan we swamped to a 5-0 win which sent the fans into a frenzy. What a performance it was. Jewel Biswas our young Indian starlet grabbed a brace, whilst Pierrick, Ramlee, and Abdul Zubair all got one a piece.
Zubair made it 2 from 2 along with Pierrick in a 2-0 victory against Shivajians who were meant to be our biggest threat in the group.
In the final game in the group we came out 3-0 victors. Ramlee grabbed 2 and continued his good run of form whilst Biswas nicked the other. Whats more impressed is that we hadnt conceded a goal in the group stage. What a defense we have.
Churchcill Bros were drawn against us in the Semi Final but we dispatched them with ease as we won 4-1 with Pierrick grabbing 2 goals alongside Diogo Ferreira. It was some performance only marred by the goal they scored towards the end.
Our group stage friends Shivajians also made the final, so I was quietly confident heading into it as we'd already beaten them before without letting them score. A confident, strong performance led us to a 3-1 win. Biswas the young starlet put on a show and scored his 2nd brace of the competition. Singh rounded off his fine tournament with another goal and the trophy was ours.
Not a bad start for my career in India!
tongey
It's the off season now in India, so I'm currently trying to get a squad together to try and win the Indian Super League and to tick that off my list. Whilst aimlessly clicking space this little email popped into my inbox which can only be a good thing:
So with that, I now have my 'National B License, and I immediately asked the board if I could go and start my National A License to which they said yes. Positive steps for Tonge.
tongey
It seems like I'm in a different cup competition every other month. Not every club will be like this though so I'm looking forward to taking on a harder task in some different countries throughout this career. I think I lucked out with the Mohun Bagan job.
Anyway, the Super Cup came around and we faced Chennai City. It was quite a competitive game but when Pierrick guided a wonderful header past the Chennai keeper to make it 1-0, we went into cruise control and it was that man again who side footed his second from 10 yards out. We were coasting to the finish line and another trophy when with 3 minutes to go a lapse in defense let them in and they made the most of it. 2-1 the final score.
tongey
Coming into the season after winning two trophies in a few months is quite a nice way to come into it. We were on a high and I was hoping that wasn't going to change. I'd only bought the one player into the club as I was struggling to find anyone else with the quality to add anything. Nor Azizi Ramlee, the only addition to add some depth up front. The NFL (National Football League) season is only 18 games long and there are games every 4/5 days so it runs by pretty quickly.
A little bit of bad news as we got closer to the season was that Pierrick went down with a nasty injury in training. He was to be our for 4/5 months which means the whole season really. He's our talisman up front so I really need Ramlee to make his mark at his new club.
It really has been an easy ride. I've been so lucky landing this job so I can't see me staying here this long as it's not really that competitive. We've won 8 out our 9 league games and drew the other one. 28 goals scored and only 4 conceded shows how dominant we have been. The biggest and most important games were against Shivajians and East Bengal which ended up 1-0 and 3-2 respectively. They were probably the closest games we encountered as well but other than that it's been plain sailing. Of course with this form we're top of the league by some way as well so hopefully we can continue it and get that league trophy in my cabinet.
6 points clear at the top, with Shivajians behind in 2nd, and East Bengal a further 3 points behind in 3rd. It should be plain sailing but I won't count my chickens yet.
Diogo Ferraira leads the way in performances with an average rating of 7.83 over the season. Thats incredible. He sits in the middle of the park and just sprays the ball around and lets the others do the work around him. A bit like Carrick for UTD.
Jewel Biswas, the 16 year old Indian starlet has the most goals this season so far with a massive 14. Thats some stat for a 16 year old. Can he get over the magic 20 this season?
Ramlee has an equally good record with 9 goals in 11 games, he's coming into a bit of form now so hoping he can kick on and get nearer 20 as well.
Abdul Zubair has the most assists with 9. He was the best emerging player last season apparently and he is showing his talent once again this time round.
tongey
As you know, we've been finding this pretty easy in the Indian National Football League up to now and I fully expected things to continue in the same vein. Shivajians were putting on the pressure and wouldn't go away and I suppose this made things a bit more exciting for me. No new additions to introduce you to, but Pierrick did come back late into the season after his serious injury. What a strikerforce we have. Pierrick, Biswas, and Ramlee all who are capable of 20+ goals a season.
More of the same it was, although we didn't do as well in the 2nd half of the season as the 1st half. 7 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss. We hadn't done the invincible season which is a shame but I'll take it. Chennai City were the only team all season to inflict defeat upon us. It was an exciting game in all fairness and they deserved the win. They caught us on an off day. Neroca also managed ot take points off us as they drew 1-1 with us. A 4-0 battering of rivals Shivajians was the highlight of the season and a victory that will stay with me.
It left us top of the tree, 15 wins from 18. 1 loss, and 2 draws. We ended up having a goal difference of +47 which is outstanding for an 18 game season. We managed to win the league with Shivajians 4 points behind us, so they kept things interesting. Another trophy in the bag.
Federation Cup
The Federation Cup runs after the season, and I think all Indian teams qualify but I'm not sure what the requirements are. We entered at the quarter final stage.
It was Churchill Bros up first in a 2 legged afair. We got away with it in the first leg, they totally outplayed us and Pierrick managed to rescue us a draw and also give us the advantage on away goals. We totally dominated in the 2nd leg and won 6-1 Ramlee was outstanding and scored a magnificent hattrick to ensure we were on top. Good old Shivajians were our next victims in the semi-finals. A 4-0 domination happened in the first leg which put us in firm control of the tie. In the 2nd leg we lost 1-0 but that didn't really matter. We were through to the final and had a chance of making it 4 trophies in the year.
The final wasn't easy at all. Neroca had astounded all and had made the final. They managed to take us to extra time after we had switched off in the last 10 and they came from 2 goals down to make it 2-2 at the end of 90 minutes. Nothing separated us as we came to 120 minutes but then that man Pierrick came up to complete his hattrick in the 121st minute. What a time to score a winner and a 3rd goal. WE HAD DONE IT!
Confederation Cup West
The Confederations Cup is a tournament like the Champions League I think. We must have qualified from the league win last season when I wasn't in charge. We were drawn in Group B alongside: Al-Arabi (KUW), Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya and Al-Oruba Sports Club. I had no idea whether the group would be easy or hard so just took it one game at a time. We had no Pierrick for the duration as he was injured for most and I didn't feel the need to register him.
We lost the 1st game to Al-Arabi (KUW) so I thought we were going to be up against things, but this turned out not to be the case. We won the remaining games in the group with aplomb and topped the group at the end of the group stage. In the semi-final we were up against Wehdat from Kuwait (I think). Once again we sent them packing and out of the competition after a 1-0 win in the 1st leg and a total destruction of 6-1 in the 2nd.
We haven't played the final of the West Area Section yet but I'll stick around with Mohun Bagan to see how this tournament plays out. Then I think it's time to leave the club and start something in Europe.
Player Stats
Pierrick topped the average rating stats after playing 14 games this season and averaging 7.86 for these matches. That's quite impressive but Abdul Zubair played over double that and averaged 7.81.
Nor Azizi Ramlee topped the goalscoring charts once again for one of my clubs with 30 goals in 32 games. Juwel Biswas got over the 20 mark with 23 in 33 games. Pierrick got 17 goals in 13 games. Thats a massive 70 goals from the 3 players. Impressive eh.
Abdul Zubari got the most assists with 20 in his many appearances for the club.
tongey
We had reached the final Confederation Cup West Final and we were just waiting to find out who we were going to be up against. The team we got drawn against was: Al-Muhafazza. Once again I didn't know much about them, but I expected us to do well. The squad we have are a real force in Indian football and this transferred over to the continental stage during the group stages os why shouldn't it continue?
We beat Al-Muhafazza over the 2 legs 8-3 on aggregate. We blew them out of the water at home and away scoring 4 in each game. It was some performance by the boys and it was enough to send me to the Confederation Cup Finals.
East Bengal had also made it to the final setting up a Kolkata Derby as the final. That's some spectacle if you know your Indian football. It was a close game and ended after 90 minutes 0-0. They took the lead in the 94th minute but we responded quickly through Ramlee in the 99th. In the 102nd we got our chance to score the winner. A penalty was awarded and Pratesh Gomes stepped up confidently and slotted it home.
MY FIRST CONTINENTAL CUP!
I have decided to leave Mohun Bagan and try my luck in Europe somewhere. I haven't decided where yet but we will soon see. Before I left, I asked the board if I could start my Continental Level C coaching badge and they obliged. I then handed my resignation in.
jameo_94
tongey
NEW BEGINNINGS IN EUROPE!
I resigned as manager of Mohun Bagan late in 2021 and by the end of the year I had my next job. I had loaded a random selection of European leagues: Italy, Greece, and Spain and a number of jobs interested me including Huesca in the Spanish 2nd Division and Venezia in the Italian 2nd Division. I was unsuccessful in both of these applications and didn't even get to the interview stage. A job came up that I instantly fancied my chances at...
CATANZARO
Catanzaro have a strange history in Italian football. They were originally founded in 1929 under the name Catanzarese. in 1946 they we re-founded and changed their name to Unione Sporting Catanzaro. In 2006 they were re-founded once again and changed their name to Football Club Catanzaro. This wasn't the last however and in 2011, they changed name to Catanzaro. I'm not to sure on the reasons for it's re-founding and branding 4 times but it's an interesting club and I can't wait to learn more about it. Think I'll be here for a while.
Club Information
As you can see, the club's nickname is Aquile which translates into English as 'Eagles'. They have fierce rivals in Cosenza, Vigor Lamezia, and Catania. Finance wise, the Owner loves the club and we're doing ok with money. We have a fairly decent support for the level we're at having nearly 1,500 season ticket holders. Not bad as I said.
Facilities
The club plays it's home football at Stadio Nicola Ceravolo which is in the town of Catanzaro, Italy. It holds a capacity of 14,650 which we are nowhere near filling at the moment but you never know, one day. We have Good Training Facilities, and Average Youth Facilities which I'll aim to build up as I spend more time at the club. I'm hoping it'll be a nice little challenge for me here in Italy.
Squad
The squad needs a few additions to help us on our way. We are expected to finish in a playoff position, but we're down in 15th as we stand. I think the league splits into two at the end and the top half is the playoffs and the bottom is relegation playoffs or something similar. Our media prediction is actually 5th so we have the talent apparently. We need another goalkeeper to add some depth and competition so I may pull one up from the youth team and see how he does. We also need another striker for the same reason as we only have one at the club at the moment. I'm pleased with what I've got at my disposal though and I'm excited for the rest of the season ahead.
Current Performance
Like I said above we're currently down in 15th. We've hit a bad run of form in the past 5 games and haven't won. I'm looking to turn that around early on and to gain a bit of momentum. Let's see how I get on eh?
tongey
This is my first update regarding football matters since taking over the vacant managerial post at Catanzaro in the Italian 3rd Division. First of all a little bit of news regarding my manager.
I had started my coaching qualification at my previous club Mohun Bagan the day that I resigned from them. I have now completed that. I asked the board if I could start my next qualification but they refused my request due to the clubs financial situation which makes sense as we are nearly a million in the red.
LEAGUE PERFORMANCE
We've played 9 games since I took over and the squad has played magnificently during those 9 games winning 7, drawing the once and losing only the once. I'm not sure what the previous manager was doing but he wasn't doing well. The media predict us to finish in 5th position and we were floundering down in 15th when I took over. We've played mainly middle of the pack teams and have come out on top in most of them. Our attacking play has been so pleasing and the defense has been working hard to shut the opposition out. 3 clean sheets in my time in charge isn't too impressive and I'd like more but I'll take it. The match against Barletta was such a poor performance I thought that I had a different set of lads out on the field. Anyway that's left the league looking like this:
We've risen to 5th in the league, a massive 22 points behind the leaders so winning the league is out of the question. I think the playoffs are firmly in our grasp and thats the aim for the club. Who knows what happens in the playoffs, it's a lottery most of the time. We'll try and pick up as many points as we can to try and get a better draw for these play offs (if we reach them).
Daniel Onescu leads the way in the average rating department having achieved a rating of 7.27 in his games played. That's not too shabby. He's chipped in with 8 goals and 6 assists.
Anotonio Lukanovic has been a wonder up front since I took charge and has scored 11 goals this season. I'm hoping he continues his form and carries on finding the back of the net in the final 9 games.
tongey
With 9 games to go, we were sitting in 5th place in the league with no real shot at the title and our main ambition to make the playoffs. As I said, we had played mostly mid table teams and a few lower table teams in the previous 9 so we were due to play the top half teams in the next 9 fixtures.
We did pretty well considering we played a lot of better teams. We won 4 games, drew 4 games and lost only 1 time yet again. The loss came away against highflyers Monopoli. They totally outclassed us and really showed us up. Our best result came against Cosenza who sit around the same position as us. 5-1 the final score and an important 3 points against a very good team. We managed to draw against the eventual league winners Salernitana which was pleasing.
We finished in 6th position which is a massive improvement on where we were when I took the reigns. Who knows where we couldve ended up if I was here for the whole season. Anyway we qualified for the playoffs with ease really and I'm looking forward to seeing if we can progress through the rounds.
Next update will be the playoffs.
tongey
Having had quite a successful time of it since being placed in charge of Catanzara we had qualified for the play offs. I'm not sure how the playoffs work as there are 3 leagues all trying to gain a few places in the league above. I think it's just one big knockout tournament and you just keep going until you're the only team left. It's a seeded competition so the better you do in the league, the 'easier' your task is meant to be. We were drawn at home to Casertana who also played in our league the Serie C/C. We finished above them in the league campaign as they finished in 9th and us in 6th.
Unfortunately for us, we had a lapse in our defence at the end of the 2nd half and after we had been put in front by experienced midfielder Alessio Benedetti we switched off and let them score twice in the 2nd half. The sucker punch being the winner in the 87th minute. We controlled the game but as I said, just switched off and went crashing out of the play offs after only one game. Disappointing but we will aim for the league win this year so we don't have to go through the pesky play offs.
PRE-SEASON ROUND UP
We played a total of 7 friendlies against a variety of teams. Some in the Serie A such as our feeder team Fiorentina and lower league teams such as Palmese (RC). I was pleased with how we played in these and we did well against most of the teams. The main thing is to get the players used to the tactics which I tweaked to hopefully improve us. At the same time as the friendlies the first rounds of the Italian Cup were to be played which adds a bit of extra competition to the pre-season.
We sailed through the first round, with a thrilling 4-3 win against Bassano. It doesn't look like we sailed through but we controlled the game and really should've won it in 90 minutes. Youngster Andrea Mercurio netted the eventual winner in the 119th minute to send us through to the 2nd round. Cesena who play in the Serie B were up next and we played really really well. We went ahead through Antonio Lukanovic but once again we switched off and let them score twice to take the lead late on in the 80th minute after an own goal. I was gutted as we really need the cash and I always love a good cup run.
TRANSFERS
Given the financial problems I have at the moment I didn't have a huge budget so I prioritised the one area we needed to improve the most which was the Goalkeeper. Alessandro Livieri came in for £91k from FeralpiSalò. He is a huge improvement on our previous keeper Cortina who I decided to release from the club at the end of last season.
I also brought youngster Vittorio Mehmetaj into the club from Pro Piacenza for free. He plays as a holding midfield player and will provide a bit of competition in the middle of the park. I hope he can improve at the club and really become a top player.
SatournFan
Great career for you in Asia. Unfortunate with losing play-offs at Catanzaro here but I think you'll bounce straight back next season. Good luck!
tongey
HALF WAY THROUGH 2022/2023 SEASON
Pre season went well, we brought in a few players to strengthen the already impressive squad and we were ready to start the league campaign. We're now 18 games into the season which is exactly half way. The Serie C Cup has also started and we are 2 rounds into that. I like having a cup competition to take part in as it breaks up the monotony of the league campaign which can get a bit repetitive sometimes. A little bit more info for you is that we have been taken over by a new chairman. He hasn't invest any money but has piled more debt on us by making us take out a £900k loan so that's not good. I kept my job though.
Anyway, as you can see, our league campaign has been immense. There are so many green dots on that list and that stands us in good stead. A total of 14 wins, 2 draws and 2 losses in the league so far this season. I can't quite believe it but with the right tactic and a bit of confidence the players seem to be far and away the best team in the league. Lukanovic our main striker from last season started the season well but drifted off so I chose to drop him and put in a youngster Andrea Mercurio who has taken his chance at the first team and has scored 13 goals in 10 appearances in the league. His hattrick in the 6-3 hammering of Paganese was a particular highlight. The two losses came against Reggina who beat me last season, I just can't seem to get it right against them. The other was against Casertena but I'm ecstatic with our league form.
We sit top of the league by 5 points ahead of Cosenza who are keeping up with us somewhat. Our goal difference is a massive 14 goals better off which is amazing. We sit 14 points ahead of 3rd place with a game in hand so I'm pretty confident that'll I'll finish in the top two positions. Hopefully it'll be on top.
Serie C Cup
We have played two games in the cup so far. The first was against Forli who play in the Serie C/A. We comfortably dispatched them with a 4-0 win and we were into the hat for the next round. Siracusa were our next opponents. The team play in the same league as us so we knew them well. A last minute winner by Suraci sent us through. We got away with it a bit but I'll take a win any day of the week. In the Qtr Final, we play Cosenza which is set up to be a fantastic battle.
Player Stats
Andrea Mercurio has been our outstanding performer this season so far with an average rating of 7.61 in his 12 games. Alex Sirri our commanding CB sits in 2nd place with a rating of 7.39.
Andrea Mercurio also tops the charts in the goalscoring department as well. He has 17 in his 12 games which is outstanding. Luigi Falcone has 10 in his 22 games.
Daniel Onescu is the lead assister in the team with 9. Not bad considering he missed a chunk of games due to injury at the start of the season.
tongey
18 games in and we were sitting pretty at the top of the league after a long run of good form. I fully expected to continue this form and take the league by storm. I've been looking for a rightback all season as well as I've been playing my Right Winger there who's been doing a grand job but I'd rather a fully natural RB played there instead. We also had the continuation of the Serie C Cupto break up the league campaign.
League Fixtures
So what a run it was until the end of the season. We played a total of 20 games this side of the last update. We managed to win a total of 13 games. Drew 6, and lost only 1. That's some half of a season by my boys. Our loss came against the old rivals Cosenza who deserved the win truth be told. We had two games in which we scored 6 goals which is massive. Thats the merit of this team, our attacking play. We seem to score goals for fun and over the season we scored a total of 90 goals. (Wouldn't it have been nice to get to 100). During the season we also managed a 20 game unbeaten streak which is way better than I've ever done before. Anyway this form led to us being where in the table?
League Table
38 games played, and we finished top of the tree. It was quite a remarkable season and I'm so proud of the team that I've built and grown over the season and a half I've been in charge. It was a massive 14 point gap between us in 1st and Casertana who performed well at the end of the season to finish in 2nd.
ANOTHER TROPHY TO ADD TO MY COLLECTION!!
Serie C Cup
The cup was fairly straightforward for us. We sailed through every round, beating teams Forli, Siracuse, Cosenza, Pordenone, and Foggia in the final. I've never seen a 2 legged final before either which is a strange way of doing it. We did the job in the 1st leg and then nearly threw it away in the second losing 3-2. Fortunately we won the 2 legged tie 4-3 on aggregate. Make that a double for the season.
Player Stats
Average Rating:
1) Luigi Falcone - 7.40
2) Mattia Maita - 7.33
3) Andrea Mercurio - 7.32
Goalscoring
1) Andrea Mercurio - 32
2) Luigi Falcone - 25
3) Alex Sirri - 8
Assists
1) Emilio Barbieri - 13
2) Daniel Onescu - 12
3) Luigi Falcone - 12
tongey
Just a quick update to show you how we progressed in the Serie C Super Cup. It's a group stage tournament with the winner of the group taking home the trophy. The three teams involved were ourselves, Foggia and Bassano.
We ended up in the middle of the pack having beaten Bassano, 1-0 with Emilio Barbieri grabbing the winning goal. We lost to Foggia 2-0 which was a disappointment. I'll have to come back to the Serie C in the future to tick this one.
jameo_94