The Swan Life

Ok so I have already started the game and have gotten to September 2nd 2013 so far. Then I decided to begin this career.



Transfer wise not much happened. I usually dont like to make many transfers at the start of a game and like to see what I can do with the current real life roster. A few minor changes where made. Leroy Lita had 1 year left on his contract and with him being a poor player IMO i decided to cash in on him, €1m isn't too bad for a player that is League 1 suited.
As his replacement i brought in Nuno Gomes simply for the fact as cover to Wilfred Bony, Alvaro Vasquez (on loan from Getafe and who is injured for 3 months since July having damaged his achilles tendon) and Alejandro Pozuelo.

Also having missed out on Honda, I was left pretty short in CM being left with only Jonjo Shelvey, Jose Canas, and Leon Briton, so I brought in Glen Whelan on loan from Stoke who was listed. Although he's nothing special, he is decent and will help us out if we get any injuries/fatigue.

Formation wise:



I've went with the vintage, and worldwide used nowadays formation of the 4-2-3-1. Nearly every team in the Premier League today are using this formation.

Vorm is usually in goal but he is injured for a few days that's why you dont see him in this.

Taylor and Rangel down the wings, Amat who I have been surprised by starts alongside captain Ashley Williams. Chico on the bench as a back up CB.

In the center of midfield I have gone with Liverpool reject Shelvey and Leon 'The Pass' Britton. I never really rated Jonjo and always thought that he would look like roll on deodorant if he ever wore a turtle neck but he's doing his job properly and is still young (21). Britton is my version of Chelsea's Essien (04-07) The anchor. A great player and a great passer of the ball, his only weakness is probably his height (5'5" which will lose us a few goal kick interceptions etc. but Shelvey will be there for that, all 6 feet of him.

On the wings i have the ever reliable Nathan Dyer on the left and Pablo Hernandez on the right. Both good wingers with great acceleration and pace. Routledge and Lamah on the bench as back ups.

Then we have the gawd that is Michu. This guy will be the key to our season. A coup of a signing in real life (2.2m), with good height (6'1" strength, heading, shooting, stamina, pace, and finishing...this guy is the complete package, expecting big things from him this season and he already has delivered, which I will inform yous about further down. Michu's back up is Jonathan de Guzman who I know is too good to be keeping the bench warm so I will be implementing him into CM too at times when in need of a few goals to beef up my attack.

Up front I have Wilfred Bony who I feel will be my Papiss Cisse/Demba Ba (Newcastle days). A complete forward which I am expecting big things from and much like Michu, will be crucial in weither this season will be a success or not as my only other forwards are relatively unknowns.

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The season has started better then I have expected to be honest, and besides our friendly loss to Napoli, we are unbeaten. Wins away to Tottenham (Michu hat-trick) and Everton sticking out. And not to forget the home win over Liverpool. I'm obviously delighted with these results but I know not to get my hopes up as it is still early days and anything can happen.
Bony has been on fire scoring 8 goals in 7 games. Beast.



In Europe we managed to surpass Belarusian minnows Shakhter Soligorsk and Cypriots Apollon Limassol to qualify for the group stages where I have been drawn against Grasshoppers, Austria Wien and unfortunately Sevilla. I think we have what it takes to qualify, coming 2nd. But im not ruling out Grasshoppers or Austria Wien as with our lack of European football experience, could prove our fall.



So after the first month of the fixtures played this is how the table looks. Like I said already we;re not getting ahead of ourselves. Yes we are top but it's 3 games into the season, and the season is long..and cold..and dark..and rainy...and long, did i mention cold?

Long way to go, lets go.

Great start to the league there and should get at least 2nd in your Europa group KIU

Thanks man, I think we can, we just have to stay focused and not take our opponents lightly.

Finally got beaten, last game of the month too. Was bound to happen and in a way Im glad it did, now the pressure of being unbeaten is lifted off of us. Went down 2-0 away to Fulham but 3 of my key men pulled a goal each back to give us the win. Also a surprising 9-1 hammering away to Grasshoppers, Dyer getting 4 goals! Cardiff took us to extra time where the gawd Bony snook the win for us 4 minutes in.



5 game sin, 4 wins 1 loss, pretty happy with that. Newcastle topping the table with West Ham and Liverpool rooting the bottom. Man City havent come into their stride yet. Still early days.



Started our our journey in the Europa League groups with a win which puts us joint top, those 9 goals goals could come in handy in goal difference.

All in all, a good month for us

So October didnt start well with a loss at home to Sevilla, was frustrating as we had so many chances and Sevilla nicked it in the 85th minute. We won away to Austria Wien none the less and Sevilla drew so we're still in with a shout.
League wise we failed to win a game. Have to pick it up next month but we have tough games vs Man City and United. Here's hoping.



Table wise we're sitting a spot ahead of mid-table but also having played a game less then alot of our opponents, due to the Europa League.
Still early days, December should paint a better picture of how teams are going to do. I would be happy with a top 7.
Newcastle bossing it.
Cant believe we lost at home to bottom of the table Sunderland



So at the half way mark we're sitting in 2nd place with 6 points, 1 point behind the leaders Sevilla and 4 and 5 points ahead of Grasshoppers and Austria Wien respectively.

With my next 2 games being vs the bottom 2 and both games at home, I will be hoping to gain maximum points and hope Sevilla suffers a draw/defeat along the way before our final group game. Top spot could go down to the final game if all goes to plan...but unlikely.

Hopefully November proves better league wise!

And that it did! A fantastic 1-0 win over Man City, followed by a 5-0 thrashing over Palace meant the loss to United meant nothing as we where never going to win at Old Trafford.



The 2 wins and loss have left us in 9th on 20pts 4 points behind 1st with a game in hand over once again, most teams.
Teams seem very clustered at the moment, Im sure in the coming months gaps will begin to appear seperating the top 4 from the top 10. And the bottom 15-20.



The win over Austria Wien meant we qualified for the next round. This win followed by the demolishing of Grasshopers for a 2nd time have left us 1pt behind Sevilla who evidently won there 2 games therefore are 1 pt ahead in 1st place.
Last game of the group for both of us is vs each other. Winner takes first.

Good start mate ! Getting out of your Europa league and it is a very close league !

Looks an impressive season so far matey, kiu

Nice one boys, top 7 finish and a decetn European/Cup run should be good for the first season.

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And it was Sevilla that took it. They deserved it but we gave them some pressure and kept up with them throughout the group. Qualification is all that matters. League wise it wasnt our best month with only 3 wins out of 3 wins out of 6. Dissapointing losses to Southampton and Cardiff left us grieving. Try to pick it up next month.



Table wise the gaps are beginning to appear. Personally I would like to be higher up but to be fair we have played 1/2 games less then alot of the teams above us. Our goal of at least 7th isn't too far off.



Having finished 2nd we where drawn vs Vitesse, not the worst draw ever. Having finished 1st would have pinned us vs Esbjerg but Im confident we have what it takes to surpass our dutch opponents. If we do we will play Celtic or Zeljeznicar of Bosnia.

January started off alot better and was actually a pretty successful month. Out of our 8 games we managed 6 wins. Did the league double over Liverpool which is always nice. Draws vs Chelsea and Spurs were nice too. We also made it to the Carling Cup final were we will face none other then Chelsea. We struggled to beat them even tho they had 9 players for most of the game in the league game. But track records mean nothing in finals.



League wise we moved up 2 to 9th but still the 2 games in hand not making it very clear as to what our true position is. Keeping up with the big boys for the fight of a Europa League spot.



Just wanted to show yous what the gawd that is Wilfried Bony has been up to. 32 goals and we;re only in February, can he hit the 40 goal mark?

A lot of them coming in Europe/Cups but still a class feat none the less.

Great month February, besides our hiccup due to my poor team-talk vs Sunderland, we look like a well-oiled machine.



That fine months results followed by us playing our games in hand finally has left us in 5th, dare we challenge for a Champions League spot in our first season?



Our 10-5 aggregate win over Vitesse means we qualified for the next round and as expected will face a tough game vs Celtic. We have to make the most of the first leg at home as Celtic Park is a fortress, especially on these European nights.

Excellent run of form, fantastic in the league and in europe, Celtic will be a tough ask though!

Good run in February mate. I also drew Swansea with Celtic in the same round. Finished 5-4 on aggregate after extra time.

Nice one lads. February was a good month indeed...a simpler time.

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So we went into March with the first game being in the Carling Cup final, we managed to take Chelsea all the way to extra time but by then we where too fatigued to go for a win and where caught on the counter attack. We kept our heads high none the less and did well to make it to the final.

League wise it wasn't out worst month. Out of 5 games we won 2 and drew 2, only losing to City and the heavy defeat was due to me fielding a team of back ups in order to keep my first team regulars fresh for the crucial game in Glasgow 5 days later.



These results have left us in 4th, 3 points ahead of Spurs. 6 games to go, can we hang on to the 4th and last place to qualify for the Champions League?



Following our 2-1 aggregate win over Celtic we have been drawn vs Bordeaux. Satisfied with this draw as some of the other potential opponents were simply to strong (Bayern).

The game vs Celtic was a nervy one. We managed to go 2-0 up at home but they pulled one back late on to make the return game at Celtic park a nervy one. The longer the deadlock remained to be unbroken, the more I was sure Celtic would nick a goal and go through on the away goals rule.

Shame about the defeat in the capital one cup! But good to beat Celtci and a winnable tie in the next round of the EL! CL football could be on the cards next year!

Yeah it was a shame but that's football.

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We brought our good form into April and started it off with a precious 1-0 away win in France. In the return leg we dominated and ended up winning the tie in style with a 4-0 demolition.

League wise we won 3 from 4 winnable games. We where lucky to escape from Norwich with at least a point.



These results have left us in 4th.Thankfully our slip up vs Norwich didnt cost us the spot as of yet because at that point we where 1 point ahead of Spurs until the following week where they interestingly enough lost away to Norwich as we did the business vs Hull to widen the gap to 4 points with 2 games to go. Can we hold on?



After we surpassed Bordeaux, we were pitched against Turkish giants Galatasaray in the Europa League semi-finals!. I was always weary about playing at home first because if the result went sour we would find it difficult to get anything in the return leg in the hostile Turkish cauldron.
And that is what happened. Having gone up 2-0 after 15' minutes, Galatasaray slowly started to get themselves back into the game after they pulled one back after 32'. They equalized 2 minutes after the restart through Drogba and took the lead on the 72'.

Going into the 2nd leg needing to score 2 times with no reply was always going to be a daunting task. We would need some sort of miracle, similar to what Greece went through through their Euro 2004 journey. Wesley Sneidjer and Didier Drogba both being ruled out due to injuries gave us a glimmer of hope.
We took the lead on 24' through the one and only Bony only for Galatasaray to equalise 4 minutes later. to make it 4-3 om agg to them.
Shortly before half time the surprise of the season Nathan Dyer popped up with his 22nd goal of the season to give us the lead and make it 4-4 on aggregate. With Galatasaray having put 3 past us at home it meant they had the away goal advantage, meaning we still needed to score once more.
6 minutes into the 2nd half could have been that time, as Nathan Dyer was brought down in the box providing us with an opportunity to take the lead. This was not to be as Michu's shot was saved. It wasn't meant to be I thought to myself.
However with 18 minutes to go that guy, Drogba 2.0 Wilfried Bony put the ball in the back of the net to give us the lead on aggregate and evidently win the tie.
We have qualified for the Europa League final, the first Welsh side in history.



There we will face the Ukranian powerhouse Shakhtar Donetsk. Can we make history?

Nice to see you still holding the CL place with the season closing in! And well done on getting to the EL final!

Well done on the EL run, tough final ahead of you. Very interesting at the top with them 3 on 72 points.

Nice one boys. @Sean I know its crazy, if you look at last month Arsenal where on 70pts!

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Evidently before our game vs Arsenal, Spurs lost away to Cardiff and therefore where unable to catch us even if we lost our last 2 games. We did well to comeback from 3-0 down to get a point away to Arsenal and cause a further blow to there title chances.
Our derby with Cardiff had to be taken lightly unfortunately as with the final 3 days later I had to rest a lot of our first team regulars.
We didn't lose which is the important thing in a Derby.



And 4th it was, fantastic stuff from the boys. Champions League football next season. Never expected that.
Chelsea went on to clinch the title on Mourinhos return. Arsenal had basically both hands on the trophy but self destructed and out of there last 6 games only managed 6 points to gift the title to Chelsea. A very tight title race that we in fact where not far off. Next season we will look to focus in challenging for the title more seriously.



And if finishing 4th wasn't a good enough feat, we did the business vs Shakhtar. After going 2-0 up after 31 minutes thanks to Routlege and Michu. The latter putting the nail in the coffin with 20 minutes to go. A rather comfortable win to be honest but in the form we are in I had a good feeling we would get the job done. A great feat for the lads and the club in general.

And that is that. 1st season down and we managed 2 cup finals, 1 win, and a 4th place finish.
Not bad considering minor transfers where made.
None of this would have been possible had it not been for some of the star men of the season including Dyer who managed 23 goals and 12 assists. Shelvey who assisted 22 goals!. Michu and the one and only Bony who got 51 goals and 11 assists! BEASHT.

Next season we will be kicking it up a notch. Hope for a nice run in the CL and mount a serious title challenge.

Things are just getting started

Brilliant! CHampions Legaue football confirmed and then you win the Europa Legaue! Excellent stuff matey

Fantastic season on all boards. 51 goals in a season is amazing.

Absolutely fantastic stuff man!!

Well done that's some bloody season you've had.

Cheers lads, appreciate the kind comments

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Season 2014/15 has begun and after a overwhelmingly surprising fantastic first season, it was time to take this team to the next level.
The successful season came a tremendous income of €35m. This allowed the board to generously proved us with €33m to improve the squad.

I decided to start this with the acquisition of a number of young talents from across Europe to continue our quest to become a European powerhouse. A nice young talented squad is what I plan on having and that is what I went after.



The ones that stood out where;



Sebastien Corchia, an up and coming RB who I have read great things about on various FM forums. Rangel did a good job last season but at 31 I wanted to bring in a younger player, a player that could be there for many years to come.



Next up I regarded as kind of a coup, Andre Scurrle, a very hot prospect currently at Chelsea. I managed to get him in on loan for the season with an option to buy at €9m anytime throughout the season. Signing of the season? Hopefully.



If you know the real Swansea team you may be a bit surprised by this transfer. Michel Vorm was a great GK but I regard Begovic to be better. Added to the fact that he is 6"5' beast. I decided to exchange the 2. Vorm was sold to money bags Zenit for €9m and Begovic came in from Stoke for €6m.
€3m profit + a better GK = Win...I hope .



This next guy some of you will and probably wont know of him. Papadopoulos or K.Paps as he is nicknamed I believe can be a future captain here and take over from Williams when he is past it. Massive potential and can, provided he stays fit, do great things here.



This signing I know for sure will surprise yous but there's something about Romeu that tells me he will eventually become a world class CM/DM. €9.5m may have been a little steep but I'm sure it will work out.

And there you have it, the newest additions to the team. Young talents that I hope will be here for many years to come and help and guide us to Immortality!.

Now for the bad news.................



Having been unseeded going into the Best Placed Playoff round draw, we were pitched vs Italian giants A.C. Milan.
Finished 3rd in Serie A last season, 5 points off champions Juventus. Will certainly be our toughest European opponent to date.
What a shame it would be if we fail to make it into the CL group stages after all that we have accomplished last season.

Will this guy add to his 51 goals last season and guide us into the groups?

AC Milan will be a tough ask thats for sure!

Tough luck on the draw, Milan are beatable though.

So the season got under way with a nice win over Everton. Got destroyed by Chelsea and Barca how and ever. Wasnt expecting to win the games but to lose by that many hurt!



2 games in, 1 win, 1 loss = 13th. Early days.



Despite the negatives we did manage to surpass A.C. Milan to make it into the group stages, a relatively kind draw for us. Should be a 2 horse race to make it out of the group.

Bony getting a hat-trick in the first leg set us on our way, looks like he brought his blistering form from last season with him.

Shame about the heavy defeats against Chelsea and Barca! Well done beating AC Milan though, good group for you to be drawn into!

Seems like Bony has managed to get his form past the summer. Schurrle feels like a real steal (if you can sign him for £ 9mil). Some good signings on the board in total. You can be up for an other decent season.

I've started a season with Swansea as well. Here's my summer transfers








Won first Prem game away against Tottenham 2-1. Also through to play offs of Euro League. I'm trying to offload a few but no bids so far. Have a massive midfield.

@DanW19 - Yeah it was a shame but hey thats football.

@Dyrim - He was a steal IMO, will more then likely be making a bid.

@Curtis Brownsey - nice signings man, and nice start too. Yeah there is a few below average players both in the senior and u21/18 squads. Squeeze every scent out of them. Get a nice budget and lower the wage budget.

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Apologies for being on the missing list to whoever is following this journey, been busy the past few days but managed to squeeze in 2 month;



September and October have been hit and miss really. Out of 11 games we only managed 5 wins. Which isn't the worst but I have high expectations for this team and we shouldn't be dropping vital points to opposition such as Wigan, and Villa.
Also got knocked out of the Carling Cup at the first hurdle to West Ham. Dissapointing but maybe a blessing in disguise. 4 competitions can take their tole on players. And with it being the least prestigious competition on the 4, maybe getting knocked out isnt the worst thing as we can now focus on our main goals of the league and the CL. FA Cup due to its history I wouldn't mind getting my hands on haha.



So after them results we are left 4th in the league, 7 points behind leaders Manchester United. Still early days. I feel like the team is still gelling. Still abit rusty and have not reached our full potential such as our form towards the end of last season just yet.



Champions League wise we are hanging in there. After salvaging a point at home to Schalke on matchday one, we went on to lose 2 precious points away to Porto as we conceded a stoppage time penalty in which they equalized from.
We hammered BATE Borisov at home 4-1 to put us into 2nd on 5 points.
A win at home to BATE next game and a point from either Porto or Schalke should be enough to get us out of this group. 1st would be ideal.

On a much more sour note Michu and Shelvey have picked up injuries ruling them out for 2 and 4/5 months respectively.
A what could prove to be big losses as they are an integral part of the team, we have cover, maybe not of the same quality but we'll see what happens.





Heres to a good November + December. Oh yeah I';ll most likely be providing updates every 2 months. Depends on how I'm feeling