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#137200 VP's Stadium Backgrounds
Ice Man
#136857 Aston Villa Moneyball Career
Ice Man
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The only transfers going out were players on loan. Aleksandar Tonev was becoming unhappy due to lack of games so I thought that this was a good time to use our new partnership with Zulte and send him there. He was later joined by new Brazilian left mid Lucio who completed his move but couldn't get a work permit. By the time he has done his 3 year stint in Belgium he will be 26 and hopefully in the prime of his career. N'Zogbia finally left the club unfortunately it is only on loan for 3 months and we are STILL paying all his wages. Hopefully he can impress a few people while on loan at Yeovil and somebody will take a chance on him. Finally new summer signing Mathias Jorgensen couldn't break into the team and wanted a loan move. We found him one to local rivals West Brom.
After the first half of the season I realized that our central midfield partnership was just average. Never bad but never amazing. They are constantly getting ratings of 6.8 - 7.2 and while that isn't bad I wasn't more. The first person is Spaniard Javi Espinosa. I am hoping that despite him still being 22 he can improve our midfield and add some of that Barcelona class to this team. Another young midfielder in the shape of Leandro Paredes joined for the rest of the season on loan from Roma. Having altered my tactics I needed another attacking midfielder and this guy fitted the bill perfectly. Ole Kristian Selnaes joined on a free transfer and this guy has a promising future ahead of him. Primarily a defensive midfielder, with a bit of training I am confident that he can become a good premiership right midfielder. I am not expecting a lot from him straight away but next season could be a dark horse. The last signing was Mathias Bossaerts from Man City. With Jorgensen's departure to West Brom I needed another central defender to add some cover. Hopefully this guy can provide this and even progress into a decent center back.
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Sitting in the middle of the table is pleasing and would love to end up finishing around here. At the moment we are really struggling to turn draws into wins and stupid loses into draws. We are also having a problem making and creating chances. The amount of times we have conceded within 5 minutes and that was the only chance of the first half has been endless. Hopefully the new signings and tactic can change that.
I heard this phrase recently and it sums up our first half of the season:
"The only thing consistent about us is that we are inconsistent"
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#136765 Aston Villa Moneyball Career
Ice Man
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So all in all I am quite happy with how the transfers went. We managed to clear some of the deadwood and also managed to get rid of some of the highest earners. I really didn't want Darren Bent coming back to the club so was ecstatic when Fulham offered me what I wanted and off he went. Albrighton had been moaning a lot last season and wasn't going to be seeing any playing time so newly promoted Brighton took him off my hands. Weimann & Delfouneso both joined another promoted team in Forest. I really wanted more than I got for Weimann but it was either take that or be left with him at the club. He wasn't going to be playing much this season and it's a shame that we had to let him go but he just doesn't score enough. Didn't care about Delf as he had been out all of last season on loan and another big chunk of the wage bill. Speaking of which Alan Hutton finally left the club although we are still paying a little of his wages.
The last two were the ones that are going to have an impact on the team. Benteke made it clear that he wanted to leave and I did everything in my power to get more money than I did, but it wasn't too be. He had Bayern or Dortmund to choose from after I rejected offers from PSG, At. Madrid & Liverpool! Vlaar I had been thinking about selling all off season (rule 6 (sell while you can)) and again although I would have liked more money at 31 thought that he was only going to decline so I took what I could get and saw him leave England.
I am pretty happy with the players that I bought in. Mackay-Steven comes in as a natural left winger which is something we didn't have last season. At the age of 24 I believe that he can improve a lot and at the price that we got him for we could always sell him on for a profit if things don't work out.
Vossen, Zapata & Vydra all coming in are really fighting for two places. I thought that Vydra on a free transfer was too good to turn down and am confident that he can produce when we need him to although it wont be this season as we have sent him out on loan to Liverpool for the rest of the season, although we can recall him if we need him. Zapata was somebody that I had my eye on since I started and last season was quoted £7 million for him so when I saw him at such a low fee I had to have him. Vossen is somebody that everybody knows and I am hoping that he can take over from the departing Belgian striker although I am not expecting too much straight away.
The final 3 signings are all mainly to add some depth to the team. Dawson & Jorgensen will battle it out to try and get a look in at center back in place of the departed Vlaar, although Clark, Baker & Okore are ahead of them in the race. Schelotto has come in as cover for the season after Lowton damaged his ACL and is out for the season. What I like about Schelotto is that he is super quick and I hope that if we can improve some of his technical skills he will be a crucial player this season.
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Overall the off season has see the finances looking very healthy. Obviously the majority of the balance is from the Benteke transfer and due to me not spending all of the money I have still got £7.86M to spend in January if I need to. The most pleasing thing is the wage budget. We have knocked a lot of that with the outgoing transfers and have even managed to offer new contracts to Gabby & Delph at a lower weekly wage then they were currently on. I am going to have to offer Guzan a new deal which will likely double his current wage but the slight saving grace is that we still have Given, Tonev & N'Zogbia eating up a combined weekly wage of £127k. I am hopeful that I can at least sell 2 of them during January although if I can find somebody to bring in as a 3rd choice keeper then I may consider releasing Given from his contract.
During the off season we did also gain a new feeder club in Japan. Hopefully our presence there during pre-season as well as the link all year round can reward us a healthy monthly income.
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#136725 Aston Villa Moneyball Career
Ice Man
| Group A - Group B - Group C - Group D - Group E - Group F - Group G - Group H |
So Argentina add their third World Cup after beating Italy in the Final. They probably were the best team, although they were very lucky to overcome Belgium in the quarter finals. It was the first time that anybody had managed to stop Messi & Aguero and Argentina were indebted to Di Maria who scored an 81st minute goal to take it into extra time.
The other finalists Italy had played well on the their way to the final. They had topped their group, and with a last minute goal beat and knocked out the Germans who had drew to Cameroon which proved to be costly for them. They were comfortable against Costa Rica and the Ivory Coast game looks a bit closer than it really was. In the semi final they broke the hearts of the hosts (who were lucky to overcome Jamaica in the quarters) as Manolo Gabbiadini scored twice to send them into the final.
England had promised so much after their group stage. Having been drawn against Netherlands, Ecuador & South Korea, England came through with flying colors having beaten Netherlands 3-0, Ecuador 2-1 & South Korea 2-0. In the 2nd round against a strong Ivory Coast team it was all going well enough until Drogba scored an 80th minute equalizer to take the game into extra time. England just couldn't get going with a lack of attacking substitutions and fitness levels fading the Ivory Coast scored two goals and booked their place in the quarter finals.
Messi deservedly took home the honor of best player. The wizard not only scored 6 goals, which was equal top with Bafetimbi Gomis from France but also set up 6 goals. He really shone in the opening game against Ghana were he only scored 1 but set up 2 of Aguero's goals. In the very next game against Mexico he was faultless as he scored both of Argentina's goals and also set up the other one. His only bad game of the World Cup came against Belgium where Kompany kept him quiet the whole game. Messi didn't let that bother him though as he scored the winner against France in the Semi Final and although he didn't score in the Final he did set up 1 of the 2 goals.
#136717 VP's Stadium Backgrounds
Ice Man
Luton is showing up fine on mine. These are the lines that I have got in the config:
<record from="677" to="graphics/pictures/team/677/background"/>
<record from="677" to="graphics/pictures/stadium/677/background"/>
Don't know if they will help
#136712 Aston Villa Moneyball Career
Ice Man
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So that's what happened! We finished a very respectable 14th but we could have finished a lot higher. My main aim for the season when taking over Villa is just to stay in the league and that is what we did. Judging by the start that we made in the league I feared the worst and by October - November time I was starting to look at the job security page more frequently, but I didn't have to worry. Late November we clicked into gear and managed to put some results together and consequently we never looked back down at the relegation zone. We never threatened the top 10 but I am happy where we are at the moment as this gives us a good solid platform to build on.
We had great success in the cups by getting to the Quarter Final stage in both cups. In the Carling Cup we had good draws in the first two rounds and then in the 3rd we outplayed Fulham. We never looked like giving them a sniff. In the Quarters we never really had a chance. They had 3 shots in the first half and they all went in. This was too much for us, despite getting one we were never going to get two more.
In the FA Cup we had another couple of good draws and saw us progress to the fifth round without breaking sweat. We played an indifferent Liverpool team now managed by AVB! They got lucky in the first half and scored via a Clark own goal. Thankfully Weimann equalized on the brink of half time and allowed me to say some words of wisdom in the changing rooms and the team came out and played one of the best games I've seen in a long time.
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My player of the year will be no suprise in going to Christian Benteke. What makes this guy even better that what his record says is that after fourteen games he had only scored three goals and two of them were in the same game! I finally worked some things out and how I could get the most out of him and since January he went from strength to strength.
There was some interest in him around January time and sure enough Bayern Munich came in with a pathetic £6m offer. It was never going to be enough to sell him but it had the required effect and straight after he requested to be put on the transfer list. Noting happened for him which I was so pleased abut but now I will have to wait until the Summer transfer window opens and the barrage will begin again.
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I will be looking to rebuild this team while sticking to the guide lines in the challenge. I still have a few players that are worth some money but are not willing to budge while a couple of of others are taking up some much needed wage budget. People like Alan Hutton & Charles N'Zogbia are the most important players to get off my books while I am also hoping that Darren Bent will not be too hard to move on.
I am in the midst of upgrading some staff members who will hopefully increase my scouting knowledge (2nd rule) and find me some good cheap players that can come in and make a difference. My current coaches are doing a good job although I will be on the look out to see if I can improve on the current crop.
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#136599 VP's Stadium Backgrounds
Ice Man
EDIT: What is the next pack that you are thinking of doing?
#136573 VP's Stadium Backgrounds
Ice Man
#136459 VP's Stadium Backgrounds
Ice Man
Yeah I spent 15 mins going through all the ID numbers checking them all. Found out that they were all right and they still wouldn't show up!!!
#136439 VP's Stadium Backgrounds
Ice Man
Firstly thanks for these they look amazing.
I am also having the problem with Houston & I've got Philadelphia not working (not good when you are managing them!) It is really weird though because before I had D.C United not working but Houston & Philadelphia were. It's really frustrating.
Also had a few backgrounds not working in the England League One & Two backgrounds.
#136195 VP's Stadium Backgrounds
Ice Man
EDIT: Can I put in an early request for the MLS & USA when you have chance. Thanks
#135586 FM14 - Moneyball
Ice Man
#133950 FM14 - Moneyball
Ice Man
Hope this makes sense
#133831 FM14 - Arsenal
Ice Man
On a side note are you making any more of your stadium backgrounds? Really liked the way you did them back in the day!
#133392 Canada
Ice Man
#132820 Canada
Ice Man
So far the only thing of real note is that we won the Gold Cup in 2015. We are currently in the 4th stage of World Cup Quals and have got the Confederations Cup coming up later in the year. It's a really busy year.
The only thing that we are missing is a good regen striker. I have pretty much played Simeon Jackson and Junior Hoilett up front ever since I took over but have managed to find a few ok players. Just waiting for some good players to become Canadian or a good regen to pop up from somewhere!
#132758 Canada
Ice Man
Keep up the good work. Really like seeing somebody else play as Canada.
#131279 FMC FLUT skin for FM 2014 v 2.0 [updated 30.07.2014]
Ice Man
That would be why then!!
Shame though
Thanks
#131144 FMC FLUT skin for FM 2014 v 2.0 [updated 30.07.2014]
Ice Man
Can you please help me?
#128329 CMPT DARK v2
Ice Man
1) My player profiles don't look like the one in the screenies above. On my player profile screen it has 16 customizable boxes which yours does not. Could you possibly post your player profile panels?
2) What is the font on the match screen in the team name? I am not a fan of it and sometimes the team name goes out of the box. How can I change it?
Thanks.
#116523 The English Rangers...A Berwick Rangers Story
Ice Man
#116516 My Hearts Career
Ice Man
Thats strange they seem to be working fine for me. Will look into it. Anybody else having trouble with the links?
#116344 My Hearts Career
Ice Man
League Table - Finances - Staff - Awards - Transfers - Squad
Well that brings to an end my first season and it has been a fantastic start to my Hearts career. Before the season I just wanted to make sure that we would avoid relegation. We climbed out of the bottom and out of the relegation zone by January and never looked back finishing an impressive 8th.
Throughout the season we were able to go on little undefeated runs that would always last 6 games. They came at great times as well. The first came as we were removing our 15 point deduction and getting into positive numbers. The second was as we got out of the relegation places and the third run was at the end of the season when we were trying to finish above Hibs.
While avoiding relegation is fantastic and instrumental to this club the best part of the season was winning the League Cup. We fought of Brechin in the first round and then proceeded to beat arch rivals Hibs, knock out Ross County and Aberdeen where we would play Motherwell who thankfully beat Celtic in the other semi-final. The final was a bit of a anti-climax for the neutrals as two early goals put the game beyond Motherwell. The game was confirmed with a third goal late on queue the celebrations.
Top Goalscorer - Callum Paterson
Best Youngster - Jamie Walker
Most Improved - Kevin McHattie
Most Valuable Player - Danny Wilson
Callum Paterson was the stand out player for me this season. I had to start out by playing him out of position up front but he never looked back. He ended up our top Goalscorer with 15 goals and also topped the assists charts with a whopping 17. Notable mentions also have to go to Jamie Walker and Danny Wilson who were fantastic throughout. In terms of after January when the transfer embargo was finally lifted then it would have to be the loan signing of Federico Macheda. He scored 8 in 14 which I thought would have been higher but I am more than happy with his contribution.
In terms of transfers then this season has definitely been a struggle although I firmly believe that it has helped the club in some ways. The club was in administration until September 1st so up until that point I was powerless to teams coming in and getting our better players. Up until that point we lost 4 of our better midfielders and were being forced to play 19/20 year olds. As it turned out it worked really well for us and because of this those players have become better and are now being sort after from some of England’s bigger teams.
When January 31st came around we got the best news which was the transfer embargo was over and I had transfer deadline day to bring in players that could help improve our team. After doing some business with Newcastle (they bought Callum Paterson for £3.5m (couldn’t refuse that money) and then loaned him back to us for the rest of the season) we were in a good position to offer players money. After trying but failing to bring in Craig Mackail-Smith on loan we were looking down the barrel for a striker but thankfully I managed to bring in Will Grigg and Federico Macheda. Also coming in were young right back Ryan McLaughlin from Liverpool and centre midfielder Ben Pearson from Manchester United.
2014/2015 Season Plans
I haven’t been given my transfer budget yet for the coming season but I as very sure that it will mostly go into the wages column and as long as I can adjust the money if I need to then I will be very happy.
I am hopeful that I can convince Callum Paterson to re-join us on loan again from Newcastle although this time we will have to pay 50% of his wages which isn’t a problem as it will be less than what he was on while he was actually our player! Federico Macheda will not be joining us permanently. Unfortunately he doesn’t think that this club can take him where he should be at but we will wait and see. We have however agreed to sign Manu Molina a promising young Spanish midfielder from Valencia on a free transfer. I firmly believe that this kid can dominate this league as long as we are able to keep him here.
The target for the season ahead will again be to finish in the top half of the table and possibly even qualify for Europe through our league position. I would love to defend our League Cup and hopefully if we can avoid getting Celtic then I am confident that we can do so. It would be also nice to get into the later rounds of the Scottish Cup but again it is very draw dependent.
#115290 Scott Pratts Enhamced light Skin
Ice Man
#115066 Does anybody know what logo's these are?
Ice Man
They're not the metallic flags thats what I am currently using. These are square shaped whereas the Metallic flags are a rectangles.
Thanks for having a look though.
Anybody else have an idea?
#114657 Does anybody know what logo's these are?
Ice Man
Hope that makes it easier. I am not sure on effect or texture.
#114435 Does anybody know what logo's these are?
Ice Man
Thanks
#113499 The Cardiff Logo
Ice Man
#113429 The Cardiff Logo
Ice Man
Thanks
#106876 What's the last thing you bought thread
Ice Man
How much did that cost and where from?