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#142461 Pentagon [FM14]
Eric Portapotty
The good thing about playing this much is the revenue generated that keeps us in the black (particularly after last season - we played a couple towards the end to keep us from finishing the campaign in the red).
Bad thing is, I've already played half a season's worth of games having not even started it yet.
It's not been the best preseason anyway - 4 wins from 10 would've been had we not beaten some of the bigger sides in that set, which meant that we weren't beating those that we were expected to either.
No transfers this season, everyone's in-house:
...but 2 departures, both right-backs.
The significant one is Abdulla Mehdat, who had been an unspectacular player for us (with the occasional howler), and when an offer came I could let him go and promote one of my youth-teamers, safe in the knowledge that it's mediocrity at worst.
Mansour's just a youth player who was never going to reach greatness, put it that way.
What of the non-transfers then? Well, Nyam's just put in yet another transfer request (no surprises there), but:
He's on his final year of his contract here, and it looks set to be nothing beyond that.
Quite sad really, he went from being a branded a laughingstock and a flop by his own fans to bucking up an producing dominant performances last season, culminating in him winning the Fans' Player of the Year award; too bad that renewed relationship looks set to come to an end.
I can't really tell if it's good or bad - on one hand, I can save over $2k p/w in wages, not to mention $625 in appearance fees.
He's also 32, which means paying through the nose till he's halfway to his forties isn't the best longterm plan.
Anywho, this is this season's registered squad:
Fathi's the aforementioned youth rightback, and he might have to cover for the left after Fawaz Hussein was ruled out for a couple of months.
#141910 The Armoury
Eric Portapotty
Fuck's sake.
#141587 Transfer Rumours 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
Nah, for both practical and irrational reasons.
He's on the wrong side of 30, and if this season is anything to go by then last season's lack of fitness issues are a one-off.
If Palmieri's rumours are to be believed (35 mil) then he's not worth that money, especially since we make a loss on this.
And fuck him, he showed clearly his allegiances earlier in the season, and should stick to a cause for once.
#141536 Pentagon [FM14]
Eric Portapotty
Not a bad end at all - 10 from 12, and finally getting one over the enemy that is Ittihad.
We finish 5 points off 1st, and 5 from 5th as well, not that we were in the title race though.
We've also regained our defensive solidity, but the goalscoring still proves problematic.
Players of the season:
Magnus Okuonghae:
Finally performing to the standards expected of him, he has been a colossus in defence and forged a decent partnership with Mohamed Rabie at the back.
If I'm being picky his only problem is not scoring enough headers, considering he's probably the most physical player in the league.
Ahmed Yehia:
Ever-present this season, a league-high 10 assists - Yehia's gone from strength to strength this time round.
Sherif Samir:
Top scorer (with 10) this season despite missing 3 months with a broken ankle, it kind of shows the problems we have in attack.
But he's 21 already, and if this is all he can develop to by this point then it might be time to re-evaluate his place at the club.
#141533 Transfer Rumours 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
#141441 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi
Eric Portapotty
#141414 Barclays Premier League 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
Could never handle Fergie, and sayng that Mou's afraid of failure - clearly not his niche.
At least he doesn't go around stating 'fachts' a la Benitez. Not that we aren't choking already...
#141178 Barclays Premier League 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
But how bad were we, really? Forgot about the match.
#140221 Barclays Premier League 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
Will Moyes see this as some kind of vindication?
#140220 Barclays Premier League 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
Will Moyes see this as some kind of vindication?
#140213 Barclays Premier League 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
#140177 Barclays Premier League 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
MON
#140110 The Susie Book Club
Eric Portapotty
#139945 Barclays Premier League 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
#139941 Pentagon [FM14]
Eric Portapotty
1 defeat in 6, but with 3 draws.
In general we've done well enough to keep the draws, but a lack of potency uptop leaves a lot to be desired.
10 points adrift with 12 available, safe to say we aren't in the running.
Transfers made as well:
He was targeted before the window, in light of our lack of striking options.
However, he tore his knee cartilage in his 1st training session which meant his eventual availability coincided with El Sayed's return to fitness.
(Is this how Wenger might feel now?)
He's also not yet started, as the CB partnership of Rabie and Okuonghae is going stronger than ever.
It's not like he's vary good though, might have been a mistake this.
Other things that happened:
Yes, his injury streak continued this season as we had to resort to playing Abdel Aty again.
Not that it turned out too bad though. in hindsight.
The bigger thing to happen as a result of this injury woes is his coming to terms that no one else would want a GK as fragile as him, and agreeing to sign a new deal.
It's great news, as it gives me a couple more years to find a proper goalkeeper.
Now for some bad news:
I'd have preferred he'd not be leaving, as none of our other guys have his experience.
We might have a passable replacement in Ashour though, who hasn't been abysmal when he's played.
Finally, a new batch of youngsters:
Put it this way: if Tamer Hassan turns out to be anything more than a youth reject I'll eat his hat.
Also, note to self - when managing in the lower leagues always take charge of signing your own youth candidates, not your Head of Youth Development, who possesses no ruthless streak to speak of and signs everyone up for the ride to 'boost the numbers for your youth team'.
#139927 Barclays Premier League 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
I'm not blaming him, I get that the January window is full of shit in that everyone's price is doubled.
All I'm saying is people (e.g. Piers) will see that as a failure and call for his head.
#139913 Barclays Premier League 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
I do think this is a freak result though, like the 6-3; I'm just not sure we can come back as impressively as from that and the Villa game, lots of tired legs and minds out there.
And credit where credit's due, excellent attacking from the front 4 today, we couldn't handle their fluid movement.
#139871 Barclays Premier League 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
And I've just seen Ozil get muscled off the ball by Jordan Henderson.
I mean, no one's perfect but fuck me, you're worth 42 million, surely you can manoeuvre your way out of being pressured by Jordan Henderson?
#139863 Barclays Premier League 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
#139844 Barclays Premier League 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
#139491 Pentagon [FM14]
Eric Portapotty
Could've been worse considering our preseason, but could've been better as well, looking at all those games where we failed to score.
The season started well enough results wise, with El Sayed getting a debut goal.
However he also tore his calf muscle which meant that he missed the 1st half of the season, and left us with 2 fit strikers.
It showed, as we repeatedly failed to capitalise on our chances, leading to multiple narrow losses.
On the plus side, Rabie and Okuonghae seem to have patched up after having turned on each other last season, and have formed a coherent partnership.
We're again in that 'Best of the Rest' position, not quite in a position to challenge for promotion, and having to look over our shoulders.
There's the 1st round of the Egyptian Cup, which we've managed to get past in the previous 2 seasons.
I don't like playing Ittihad, put it that way.
Oh, and some great news:
He's asked for a move in preseason, and looking at this situation he's hellbent on leaving.
Not much I can do anyway, as his contract ends in June.
Oh well, time to look for a replacement.
#139081 Pentagon [FM14]
Eric Portapotty
---------------------------
Anyway... After the signing of Okounghae I had expected a renewed boost and a way back up the standings as we looked to claw our way back into promotion contention.
Well that didn't exactly happen:
There would inevitably be teething problems whenever a new teammate arrives, but I didn't expect this, to say the least.
It got so bad the board had to give me a pep talk to keep my spirits up:
Properly reassuring.
We (somehow) finish 6th, despite that disastrous run at the end there.
Player of the Season - Ahmed Yehia
The least inconsistent player this season by far, he contributed 10 of our goals and troubled defences with his trickery.
Rightly voted Fans' Player of the Year.
Failure of the Season - Magnus Okuonghae
Might be harsh to expect world-class performances from any player, but Okuonghae wasn't just any player (in this team) - he was signed with maximum terms under the assumption that he could lead the team to the next level.
The opposite happened; complete lack of communication with his defensive partners, making mistakes every match, and being a very insecure presence in general - ironic considering his build.
---------------------
Preseason
Transfers first:
Evidently, not the best window ever, as a lack of interest in Smouha and the dearth of talent available meant that the only external addition came on Deadline Day, with all other movements being in-house.
Good news though, as 4 of the highest-paid veterans have been released/retired, which shaves over $3k off the wage bill.
The departures meant that the only true playmaker was 36 year old Hany Ragab, so I had to stock up on the future.
Determination and Composure should provide a decent springboard.
This season's Abdel Fatah, except he was alternating with the former and that he's much lazier.
Case in point:
This coming from a striker with 2 goals from 10 starts.
Good bloody riddance.
And of course there's the Hamdy departure, which leaves the 25-man squad with this:
So all 3 of the best
El Sayed will probably be playing in games where we're expected to dominate, Ibrahim is a good option on the counter, and Ragab plays the troubled upstart who has showed promise in the youth teams (even though, he's been here the longest).
Funny thing is though, Ibrahim is also providing cover for the left wing, as an inside forward.
And in defence, only Rabie and Okuonghae are starters, the others being filler from the youth squads in what is another show of my lack of planning.
You'll also notice that there aren't any loanees here; it's all in-house from here, hopefully.
On the playing side of things: in a bid to try and improve relations with him and the team I've made Okuonghae captain, only to realise that many in the team have had intentions to seize the captaincy.
As a result:
An abysmal preseason! yay
Really though, utter shambles; Rabie isn't talking to Okuonghae so the defence has been getting pulled all over the place, which means rookie Abdul Ghany (in for the injured Nyam) has had to deal with plenty of shots, which isn't ideal with he's only got a 1-on-1s attribute rating of 6.
So after preseason I decided to bow to the team's preferences and removed Okuonghae as captain, only to provoke this from half the team:
A rather accurate prediction for once.
#138094 Transfer Rumours 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
#138085 Transfer Rumours 2013/14
Eric Portapotty
But if we did fail it's probably Lille getting back at us when we snatched Park from them on that deadline day
#137820 The Night Thread Mk. IX
Eric Portapotty
#137705 Pentagon [FM14]
Eric Portapotty
2 wins from 6 and a few idiotic results leave us on the brink of being out of the running for promotion again.
`
From having 2nd spot to ourselves at one point to being 8 points off the lead, and a whole host of clubs ahead.
I've also made a couple of signings - first off:
From Leeds to Egypt? I've been far too optimistic admittedly.
However:
Yes, (English) lower league legend and part-time tank Magnus Okuonghae joins the club on a 2-year deal.
I've pretty much put my job at stake with his signing:
But he'll be the club captain, not to mention a decent tutor.
So that's the last of least season's back four gone - he had asked for a transfer at the start of the season, and his performances this season were those of a man whose heart isn't at the club.
So goodbye, and good riddance.
Bloody moron had rejected my advances the previous 5 times, and when I finally succeeds he goes on to get a 5.8 in his debut.
Imbecile.
But this is the one I'm most pissed off about:
Apparently only top-flight clubs and make pre-contract signings, so ENPPI swooped to get one of my most promising strikers on a free.
Oh well, I've left him out of my 25-man squad for the rest of the campaign so he can rot in the youth squads for all I care.
#137436 Pentagon [FM14]
Eric Portapotty
#137285 Pentagon [FM14]
Eric Portapotty
Great debut for Saad there.
And in rather more interesting news:
Due to foreign restrictions (2) Kone was the odd one out and didn't feature at all this season (think Mbimbe and Ampong).
Bad news is we miss out on the clause, good news is we now have a chance to get him in January!
Considering Ragab's age and Kone's potential it's very much in the cards.
#137272 Pentagon [FM14]
Eric Portapotty
A great set of matches culminating in a rather unusual result.
I'm inclined to believe that that last match was an outlier, a freak result with can happen to a young defence.
Keeps us tied on third, though failing to close the gap on the leaders.
You must be wondering though, it's the middle of the month, why am I posting this now?
Well here's why:
It's biennial, yo.
It's (hopefully not as bad as this time last year, where the disaster that was Abdel Nasser proved to be not that brilliant.
Nader Saad has bucketloads of experience, so he'll likely do better.
#137194 The Armoury
Eric Portapotty
I mean, he's not the most likeable guy but at the end of the day he's a passionate Arsenal fan who only wants the best for his team.