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I'm now half way through my second season and thought I'd give you an update of my story so far. This will be my last story after winning the Champions League with Celtic. There's been ups, downs and a few surprises along the way.


Why Everton?

• Everton have always been in the shadows of Liverpool. Now they seem to be slipping down the table and far from their hay day of the 70′s/80′s. It is Everton’s turn to take the mantle.
• They have a solid squad to build on. Players like Leighton Baines and Marouane Fellaini would fit into any Premiership club.
• They have limited resources. I will be working on a tight budget in the worlds most expensive league.
• I have a soft spot for them.

I’ve loaded up 14 league from 8 European countries. This leaves me with a 5 star system rating and 4 star game speed, so it should run pretty smoothly.


The leagues loaded means I should have a good spectrum of European talent to choose from as well as a host of Scottish and English youngsters.

Firstly I’d like to show my all time FM13 ranking. Not the best but in the top 1%, hopefully this save can push me towards the top 5,000.


So this is Goodison Park, where my journey begins. The media predict that we’ll finish 7th but I’m a little more ambitious and think we could finish 6th this season.


I was handed a one year contract. Part of that is that I must develop players using the clubs youth system. Everton have produced great players throughout the years like Wayne Rooney and more recently Ross Barkley.


My first impressions of the squad are;

• Steve Round is one of the best assistant managers in the game so I agree with his star ratings
• Our weakest position is right back despite 3 natural players
• We could do with and extra centre midfielder to cope with injuries
• There is only one striker in the squad with Premiership quality
• Some players are massively overpaid
• I would like to add a few Scottish players to the squad

Not much of a budget to improve the squad so a few sales may be in order. Particularly the players on high wages who wont play regularly. Transfers will be as realistic as possible, I won’t go spending millions on a single player neither will I be shipping players in and out.

I will only sign players who I think will fit style of play and improve the squad. Every player will have their price and I won’t be held to ransom by excessive wage demands, if he wants to leave then I won’t try to stop him. No one is bigger than the club.


With a mini-exodus planned I had to do all I could to stretch our budgets. I managed to build a transfer kitty of over £7m and free up another £54k a week of the wage budget.


Vellios Apostolos – Just not good enough to even make the bench and will be replaced
Jan Mucha – We should pick up a better second choice keeper on a lesser wage
Tony Hibbert – £3.5m for a 31-year-old back-up right back was a no brainer


A prime example of how no-one is bigger than the club. John Heitinga who is in the final 48 months of his contract will be sold at the end of the season.

Now with a decent budget it was time to add some extra potential to the squad. A total of £5.7m was used to improve the squad meaning I have about £2m left if I want to spend it. I still lack a central midfielder so that is my main priority now.


First in was Gary-Mackay Steven from Dundee United, costing only £2.2m. The young Scottish winger is tipped for good things and has the ability to amaze the crowd. He agreed a deal which sees his wage double after 10 caps.


Signed as a temporary replacement for Jan Mucha. Hilario offers experience to the squad and should step up to the mark when called upon. The club are only paying 50% of his wage.


Another youngster on the way to the top, Mason Bennett agreed a £5k deal which will begin when he is 17, signed from Derby for £3 million. He will sit in the first teams squad but also be available for the reserves. A very determined player and I’ve got him working with Nikica Jelavic to help improve his technical skills.

Its always good to have a good pre-season. It means the players have settled well into the new tactics and moral is high for the big kick off. A bit of rotation let me see who fits in where best and get an idea of my starting line up.


We didn’t have a tough pre-season but the squad still done well to win all of the fixtures. Victor Anichebe surprised with a string of good performances, leading to him staying at the club.


Another youngster from Dundee United, this time for a lesser fee of £500k. Ryan Gauld will sign a £3k deal when he turns 17, he should become a very good player for us and will also be available for the reserves.

nice start mate

Good start, I am looking forward to reading this story.

Cheers lads, got about a season and a half to update in the next few days.

Before the season starts I though I’d do a bit on my tactics and style of play. I’ve set up two tactics so far, one attacking tactic that will be used against most Premiership clubs and a counter attacking set-up that will be used against the bigger clubs. They are both variants of the 4-5-1.


Attacking
Attacks will start from the back with the defensive midfielder as the like between defence and attack.
Short fast passing with the team moving up the field as a unit
Players will come deep to get the ball and try to keep possesion

Counter
Similar to the attacking strategy the attack should spring from the defensive midfielder
Quick passing up the field to get in the oppositions area before they recover
A deep defensive line to encourage opponents to push up and leave space in behind


An average sale of season tickets considering Goodison Park holds just under 40,000. Hopefully a good performance this year and European football next season can improve sales.

The club was rocked by Marouane Fellaini when he requested a transfer at the end of August. Fortunately their was no bids made for the giant midfielder. Hopefully he requests to be taken of before the January window. Steven Pienaar decided to retire from international duty meaning he wont leave me short during the African Cup of Nations. Leon Osman was ruled out for 2 or 3 months with a hip injury in October and Seamus Coleman the same with a torn calf muscle in September.

The season hasn’t got off to a great start but we have got a few tough ties out the way. Our opening game was good result at Anfield followed by a big win over Stoke. We were eliminated from the Capital One Cup at the first huddle by Championship side Charlton. We can’t seem to win away from home, yet remain undefeated at home.


In 10th place we don’t sit too far off where I want to be. If we make up 2 points we will be were I want to be at the end of the season. Reading have been the surprise performers of the opening fixtures sitting in 6th place.

I was delighted to hear that Marouance Fellaini wanted to stay at the club and was taken off the transfer list. I also managed to scrape another £1m for transfers buy selling clauses from old transfers. Mikkel Diskerud agreed to join the club in January when his contract at Rosenberg expires, he adds much needed options in the centre of the park.


We have done considerably better that the opening fixtures of the season. We managed to get some results in big fixtures beating Chelsea and holding Spurs to a draw at White Heart Lane. The only poor result of the two months was the Sunderland match which a last minute goal sealed the points for the visitors.


We sit in a much more comfortable position now that in October. We’ve picked up 64% of points available compared to 48% in the previous two months. Manchester City seem to be running away with the league at the moment.

Before the January transfer window takes over I thought I’d have a look at my tactics and see where they could be improved. Our weakest area of the pitch on the attack seems to be the right wing. We lack a strong right back who can provide chances going forward and that can stop the opposition moving up the left wing.


I’ve set up a new controlling tactic, that should hopefully be more suitable to the majority of Premiership sides.


Transfers
None of the recruits have really settled in yet as they are still young and will only play a small part this season. They will come in handy however when we face League 1/2 sides in the FA Cup. I still need a right back as Phil Neville is to old to play the role I want him in and Seamus Coleman isn’t good enough yet.

Enjoying this so far, looks like you have a real shot at a top four position!

The club had been bleeding money since I’d taken over. The re-payments of loans has sent us spiralling towards the red, so some drastic cuts are in order.

• High earners had to go
• A key player had to leave
• And I’m considering selling another

First to leave was John Heitinga for £20m, double his value. He wanted to leave and only had 18 months left on his deal so it was an easy choice. However I only received £5m of it to find a replacement which will be tricky. Another centre back followed out the door, Sylvian Distan the pair saving close to £100k in wages.


The sale meant we were now back in the black, but for how long. I’ve set a cap on my wage budget now at £700k and it will stay that way until the club stop losing money every month.

Cheers mate , yeah its really tight !

My first recruit was Mikkel Diskerud from Rosenberg on free transfer to reduce the workload on the centre midfielders. He isn't the greatest player but on fairly cheap wages so should be a good rotational player.


Next in was veteran Kevin Davies, until the end of the season. He offers an extra option up front to replace the departing Victor Anichebe.


Another older and temporary signing, Owen Hargreaves offers the extra cover that John Heitinga would at defensive midfield.


My final signing of the window and most expensive yet at £6m. Rhys Willams offers cover at many positions as well as a replacement for Heitinga in the heart of defence.

decent signings good for depth and going well in the league and good job in sorting out the finances !

Cheers mate, we're sitting well the now! I always go for versatile players, the only out and out player I like to have is a striker.

Our form is going from strength to strength, only a loss to Manchester United in the first two months of 2013. We picked up a vital win over Newcastle to strengthen our stance in the table. We also made good progression in the FA Cup and face Nottingham Forrest in the next round.


We sit with a very good chance of Champions League football next season. Manchester City look to have the leave wrapped up with a bow on it, and the clubs in the relegation zone have a host players who players who I plan on snapping up at a knock down price.

Standards have slipped a bit in recent weeks but we’re still picking up points. Good wins over West Ham and Swansea help us stay in contention for a good finish. We went out of the FA Cup to Arsenal at Wembley, hopefully next year we can win it.


With a game on hand we stand a chance of rising to the top 4. Im surprised to see Manchester United so low in the table and talks of sacking Alex Ferguson.


I predict it will go down to the wire for a place in the Champions League. Only 3 wins in these fixtures will be enough to secure this, Arsenal face Stoke and Liverpool in the final fixtures.


A good season meant I was given a new 4 year deal, by the end of which I hope to have won a Premiership title and made progress in the Champions League.

Had a great season so far, hope you can make the top four.

Cheers mate!

We did't pick up the vital 9 points that we needed to secure Champions League football next season. We won what I would consider the tougher ties, and lost to struggling Aston Villa.


A great position to finish the season, 2 places above the media prediction and even a place above where I was aiming. I was surprised to see Manchester City win the league so comfortably, setting a new record for number of points in a season, and United struggle so badly.


The league finish boosted our finances going into the new season, so hopefully I get a decent budget to push for a Champions League football.

A good league finish, I'd say. And with Southampton relegated, you might pick up a few gems of theirs.

Thanks mate. They've put the asking prices quite high

2012/13 Squad and Transfer Review

Overall the squad exceeded expectations, but a lack of attacking options was the downfall of the season. Also we are still fairly weak at right back and do not create enough chances on that side of the field.

Good points

• Nikica Jelavic got a decent amount of goals and assists meaning he is playing well in my new tactics
• We have 5 very good young prospects

Bad points

• Lack of options up front
• Hilario, Phil Neville, Owen Hargreaves, Thomas Hitzlsperger and Kevin Davies all set to leave

I wouldn't say I made any poor signings but Gary Mackay-Steven hasn't settled in as quickly as I'd have liked him too. Mason Bennett and Ryan Gauld have made significant progress and look to turn out fantastic players.

A hefty budget to improve the squad going into the new season, I will try and improve the following positions;

• Goalkeeper
• Left back or right back
• Centre back
• Centre midfielder
• Striker

A few players left on free transfers, this was followed by Magaye Gueye and Bryan Oviedo for a combined fee of £8.5m to leave us with £20m to spend. I rejected a bid of £29m from PSG for Marouane Fellaini.


First in was Neil Taylor who cost £5m, making him a direct replacement for Bryan Oviedo. I plan on training him as cover for right back.


The second addition was Kolo Toure of a free transfer. He offers extra options in the heart of defence and adds experience to the side, and all at a modest wage.


James McCarthy cos us £6.5m and should be a key player this season. He is versatile in the midfield and still young enough to improve massively.

good last season ! and great new signings !

Cheers mate! Hopefully can push for the top 4!

Targets Acquired

Anitoliy Tymoschuk was released from Bayern Munich and signed a year long contract with the option of an extra year, like Kolo Toure, he will be vital in our Europa League campaign sitting in the anchorman role and allowing Marouane Fellaini to push further up.


Hilario returns again, as a temporary back up keeper until the end of the season.


A bargain for us at only 70% of his wage being payed by the club. Marko Marin only made 11 appearances for Chelsea last season, 7 form the bench yet managed to conjure 4 assists.


Jelle Vossen offers some healthy competiton for Nikica Jelavic who was our only striker who posed any threat last season. The Belgian cost £4.5m and will be thrown in at the deep end to see if he is as good as he looks.

Targets

• Goalkeeper
• Left back or right back
• Centre back
• Centre midfielder
• Striker

Failed Transfer Targets

• Gaston Ramirez - he decided to join Chelsea in a £14.5 million deal
• Henrik Mkhitaryan - signed for Manchester City after rejecting us
• Steven Fletcher - Sunderland set his value too high

Our pre-season tour of Germany got off to a bad start when a team of youngsters lost to Freiburg, I used a mixed squad in the next fixtures and won both comfortably. A trip to Preston followed with Nikica Jelavic getting a double and a draw with Benfica at home.


With Phil Neville leaving I needed a new captain. I felt Leighton Baines was the best replacement with Phil Jagielka remaining as vice-captain. The clubs season tickets also remained level with last year at 23,000.


Days before the season kicked off, Leon Osman tore his hamstring and will face up to 3 months on the sidelines. 5 points were a decent haul to get the season underway. Hopefully things pick up and we can put a run of wins together.


The table doesn't tell much as it is early days, but with a few wins we can maintain our position or rise up the table.


We drew a tough Europa League group but i feel we are strong enough to top it and progress in the competition.