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#387818 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
Thanks for the encouragement despite my struggles.
This save has nothing but frustration after I left Celtics because I can't seem to steer them from winning ways and I feel like it'll be unrealistic for me to reload the game whenever I lose or go on a losing streak and then making new tactics to see which one works.
I don't import tactics too to keep it as realistic as possible, so it's a big challenge for me who never played any FM before. You guys are basically reading my progress as an actual player of a game.
Hope I can bring you enjoyable content!
#387817 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
Thanks for the support you have shown since I've started this series with Celtic!
I won't say I'm delighted with the save but I am having fun trying to figure out stuff although sometimes it may seem frustrating.
I will probably keep with Eastleigh for one more season, if we aren't a mid table by then I might consider other teams.
And I'll keep the friendlies tips in mind, I heard having more friendlies = more revenue so I'll try to do that in the future. I usually leave this instruction with my assistant manager.
#387816 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
It's 2021, and I've only achieved nothing but a finish around 20th place to avoid relegation.
It was kind of frustrating but that's my fault for not preparing tactics before the season. I've always done it the same way, wait til the season start, create a tactic, hope for the best.
This season I've decided to do it differently, while everyone is enjoying the season's break, I've decided to do some crunch time.
With the look of the squad, I've decided to go for an odd 4-4-2 tactic.
I've realized that last season, we've concede way too much goals and have not scored much either. I've decided to keep it simple and play everyone to the best of their positions.
With the horrible defense record, I've decided to have both Ball Winning Midfielders in the middle so that they'll always aim to win the ball as early as possible, one with more concentration with defending and the other with the concentration to back up attacks.
Because our best winger in the left was a normal left midfielder while our best right midfielder was an attacking right midfielder, this is why my wingers look like this rather than the normal 4-4-2.
Our fullbacks were mostly defensive hence I gave them a very defensive objective.
While our Target man, Novakovich, has no pace but has the height and some passing ability hence I've given him a support role to win headers and lay it off for someone like Shuttleworth who has better finishing and pace stats.
I've decided to play a Klopp-esque tactic which is high tempo gameplay and winning the ball as soon as possible.
This season, I've decided to demote every extra players I didn't need who either had no pace or the needed attributes to help me succeed and listen them for loan.
With this, I needed some buffing up.
Thomas Hart, an attacking right midfielder from Southampton joined us for loan. Pacy with decent dribbling, crossing and passing.
Mark Oxley, an experienced Goalkeeper to keep pressure of young Lumley.
Martin French, another decently paced left midfielder with decent stats to cross and dribble
Sam Hedges, another striker with decent pace and decent shooting stats.
With the demoted players and the new acquisitions, this is our current squad.
With this, I've seen that we are ready for the season.
FRIENDLIES
Our friendlies went fantastic. Couldn't have asked for better.
We won all our friendlies which compared to our previous seasons, it was like a miracle.
3-1 against Norwich, 3-0 against Worcester, 8-0 against Cirencester and 7-0 against Solihull Moors.
Yeah some of them are expected to be defeated but I believe this is a statement from the squad that they're not messing about and are showing that they are really supposed twinning this games with all their efforts.
AUGUST
August went great too.
We continued our winning ways against Grimsby, but fell short against Millwall who we gave away a penalty to and it stood that way.
Against Carlisle, we fell to a 2-0 defeat, but bounced back afterwards with a 4-0 win against Rochdale, 1-1 draw against Cambridge, 2-0 win against Stevenage and 2-1 win against Coventry.
SEPTEMBER
Things slowed down in September.
We started off the month with a lost, and then a 3-0 win against Oxford.
However, this got us losing again against Braintree, Swindon and a draw against Dag & Red
Despite our current month's bad run, I believe that we have improved significantly compared to last year.
In the first few months, we actually we going shoulder to shoulder with some of the best teams in the league and we even held the 1st place spot for a period but after last month's bad run, we dropped to the 11th place which is still a big improvement from our previous season.
Our strike force improved greatly with 24 goals combined ever since their friendly.
To me this is definitely a sign for great things to come. I'm excited.
#387811 Keeping Players
AWMG
mmm, like I said. There's an option of forcing them to stay and build up the morale again.
#387743 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
To whomever is still reading this series, I just really wanted to say a big thank you to you guys first of all.
Secondly, I wanted to apologize. I've realized that the quality that I'm pushing out are quite sub-par and that's because I'm kind of discouraged considering the progress of my career isn't doing that well.
Although, I'm not discouraged in the bad way that I want to give up. I'm still motivated to bring glory to Eastleigh but am just not so sure how to do it at this state and I know it'll be a long process.
I guess what I wanted to ask you guys is are you guys still interested in this series? I'm not a good manager as compared to the other managers in here who I can see are enjoyable to read.
I'll be trying a new style of writing to create better quality story for you guys, but I guess depending on how you guys respond to this, it might be my last season of posting my story at least with this save.
I might start a new save where I start somewhere small and with all the experience I have now, I might/hopefully do better with them.
#387742 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
MARCH
March has come off as our BEST MONTH. Yes, we win 3 games. Call Barcelona and ask them to hire me because I have performed to pull off a miracle.
3 wins, 2 draws and 1 loss.
APRIL
Mediocre month, 2 draws and 1 lost.
On the bright side, we are given another season with the team.
MAY
Horrible month, 2 losses out of 2.
#387741 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
DECEMBER
The month was a massive improvement from our previous months, winning 2 games and losing 2 games.
JANUARY
The month was a pretty decent one, with 2 draws, 1 win and 2 losses
FEBRUARY
Winning 2 games, a draw and 2 losses again, another mediocre month.
#387740 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
SEPTEMBER
September went better, having to draw 4 games, win 1 game and losing 2. A VERY BIG improvement from our previous month.
OCTOBER
Horrible month arriving again. 4 losses, 1 win and 1 draw.
NOVEMBER
Let's just hope November will be the last month that this happens. An atrocious month with 5 losses and 1 draw. Conceding 17 goals in 6 games. Insane nightmare right there.
#387738 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
With the transfer window, we had again, a lot of transfers made.
21 transfers in and 8 transfers out to buff up the squad again so that we don't drop in quality when someone gets injured.
TRANSFER IN
TRANSFER OUT
JULY
July was the month of friendlies. It went... decent? We went against a team named Bognor Regis who are divisions below us and it went horribly as we drew 1-1 when we should be winning.
We played Gosport who are again, a team in a lower league than us and won it comfortably 3-0
We lost to Torquay who are again, a league lower than us which is disappointing.
And drew against Leyton Orient who are a league above us so I'm considerably pleased with it.
AUGUST
The month went horribly wrong. I don't really need to say much but basically 5 losses, 1 win, and 1 draw in the month. We conceded a total of 16 goals in 7 games. That is horrendous goal keeping and defense right there.
#387717 Keeping Players
AWMG
A. Promising them to strengthen the squad or winning something if you got those options
B. Forcing them against their will. Yeah it may have immediate morale problems and maybe some squad morale being lowered but with the right words you could sway your squad's morale the right way
C. Selling them and just milking out as much money as you can and get a player of the same or better quality. (Usually what I do)
#387606 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
Hey Cs, thanks for the comment. Glad that you like what you're reading, and yes it was a true shame.
Here's some screenshots of my previous season's tactic
#387599 Some tips and tricks?
AWMG
I've been playing FM 2017 for a while now (264 hours to be exact) and I've been having a blast (and an addiction) playing the game.
I've been doing a career story recently and had a successful spell at Celtic FC which not surprising considering they are basically the most dominant team in their respective league without much competition, although when I've been going to different smaller teams who are either fighting for a mid-table finish or a fight away from the relegation zone, I've been struggling.
I've been deploying different tactics with different mentalities and different styles, whether it's like a 4-2-2-2, 4-4-2, 4-3-2-1, control, counter, standard, defend, long ball, keep possession etc.
However, I don't seem to be able to get good results out of it.
Players wise, I believe that I've been signing decent players who have decent stats but a lot of the time I've just been fighting to get out of relegation and having close shave scenarios of getting demoted.
Any tips and tricks to manage lower league teams / to create tactics would be appreciated.
Thanks
#387253 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
*Knocks on the door*
George Waldron: Come in Dan and take a seat
*Nervously walks in. I know this scenario. Team isn't doing so well, the boss calls you in. This smells like another session of me getting fired.*
Dan Ong: Good afternoon Mr. Waldron
George Waldron: Firstly, I just wanted to say good job on your work with the team. Building such a young core and being able to keep us away from the relegation battle.
George Waldron: Honestly, I had some doubts in mind when it was seen that the team was on losing streaks, but I decided to keep you towards the near end to see how you deal with the scenario
George Waldron: You manage to keep lesser losing streaks and I realized we've been consistently keeping an average of 6 points per month which is very good.
George Waldron: Hence, I'd like to give you a contract extension
Dan Ong: A contract extension? Are you for real?! I came in here thinking I was gonna get fired. Thank you so much Mr. Waldron, thank you so much for believing in me. I will not let you down.
George Waldron: That's great to hear, let's get started with the contract talks.
With this, things looked bright for me.
The month started off decent with 2 draws, and then a lost, and then a win to summarize April
Points achieved: 51
In the last month of the season, we started of with a 2 - 2 draw against Southend
And in our last game of the month, with us being on the 19th point having only a difference of 3 points from the 23rd placed Barnet with the better goal difference than us, we still have a very unlikely, yet not impossible scenario of being relegated as Exeter has one point difference with Northampton and Braintree just 2 points away
Sadly to say, we did lose in the last game of the season. However, none of the team I stated earlier who were below me won except for Barnet. So on the bright side, we're not relegated.
*Enters in the locker room*
Dan Ong: Hey guys, I just wanted to say first and foremost, congratulations on staying in the league. It was no easy task as you guys are a bunch of young guys. Having almost 90% of the squad who are 25 and below.
Dan Ong: I'm really proud of you guys, it took a lot of hard work, sweat and pain to get this achievement and I hope next season, we will be fighting for promotion.
*The squad erupts in cheers and claps.*
#387252 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
I couldn't find any options to improve our goalkeeping options this transfer window hence it was a very quiet one.
Well this starts us off on a bad foot from my last log of us winning our first few games when we lost our first game.
However, we did pick up pace with a draw, a win, a draw and a win again in one month.
Oh, and we lost to West Ham U23 in the Checkatrade Trophy South 3rd round.
Points achieved: 32
We started February with a 3-2 win, and a 2 games losing streak, a 2-1 win against Notts Co, a lost and a draw against Hartlepool.
Another good month with 7 points
Points achieved: 39
We start March with a draw, then a lost, then 2 draws, a win and a lost.
It was still a good month surprisingly, 6 points.
Points achieved: 45
#387251 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
October went decent. Judging by our past months, our average win rate should be twice a month, so if it's below that it'll be deemed a bad month by me.
We started off October with a great start, 1-0 win against Northampton and a 3-0 win against Hartlepool.
We fell to a 1-2 defeat and three 2-0 defeat for the rest of the month.
Points achieved: 17
For November, we broke the losing streak with a draw, a 5-1 win in the FA Cup and a win in the penalties against Southampton's U23.
and again, we went on a 4 games losing streak for the rest of the month, the 5-1 lost being the most prominent one.
Points achieved: 18
For December, we broke the losing streak yet again with a 1-0 win against Tottenham's U23 and a 2-1 win against Carlisle. We lost a staggering 5-0 defeat against Fleetwood and won against Cambridge 2-1.
We again, lost the rest of the month, with another big loss, 4-1 against Southend.
Points achieved: 24
I've been realizing a trend that this team likes to win the starting games in the month, go on a losing streak, and repeat for the next month.
I guess it could be worse, and we are still gaining 6 points a month which is actually enough to get out of relegation.
Considering we also have a young core, they're doing a great job keeping a consistent average of 6 points per month which at this rate, will most likely secure us another season in the league.
#386942 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
Just like last time, I've decided to scout out youths that were released by top clubs such as Liverpool, Chelsea, Man City, Man Utd, Arsenal and other more to buff up our squad's first team and depth.
This time round, I made it sure that I'm not swayed by my scout's recommendation and judgement but rather, my own judgement by reading each and everyone's stats and if they qualify for the position I'm gonna play them in. This time, I wasn't going to be messing about
With that, a total of 15 players are signed.
I was satisfied with our friendlies to be honest, we had no blowouts except the game against Leicester U23 where we got hit 3-1. The rest, we manage to hold on to a narrow defeat, a comfortable 2-0 win and a draw.
In August, our first game went well with a narrow 2-1 win against Cambridge. However, we proceeded on a 2 game losing streak before bouncing back to a 3-3 draw against Blackpool and another narrow win against Swindon.
Points achieved: 7
In September, it went better to be honest. Started off with a 2-0 win against Bristol Rovers followed by a 1-2 lost against Yeovil. A draw from Braintree, a 5-1 victory against Exeter, and a lost against Notts Co.
The reason why I said it went better is because I'm seeing a trend that we are defensively sound, our losses aren't blowouts and have always been a one goal deficit. In my opinion, that's an improvement from my previous team who were a bit better than the team I currently am managing.
Points achieved: 11
#386940 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
Eastleigh Football Club was founded in 22 May 1946 by Derik brooks and a group of friends in the Fleming Arms public house and is currently based in Eastleigh, Hampshire, England.
The spitfires currently play at Sky Bet League Two and plays their home games at Silverlake Stadium, holding a poor youth and below average training facilities.
Surprisingly, the spitfires hold no rivals and has 2 trophies in their cabinet.
Vanarama National League South (2014)
English Wessex League Premiere Division (2003)
The squad currently holds 12 players.
#386902 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
It's been 6 months since I've been sacked for the second time.
I've been doing some soul searching while I've been exploring England.
Not going to lie, but I've been discouraged very much to manage again because so far, things haven't been going so well.
I've decided to look for possibly my last job. I've applied for loads of jobs for 6 months and have been rejected left right and center. No surprises there considering I got sacked twice.
Lo and behold, after 6 months, a job interview arrived. Eastleigh.
*I knock on a door*
Dan Ong: Hello? Is this George Waldron's office?
George Waldron: Yes, please enter and take a seat.
Dan Ong: Thank you for the hospitality, and thank you for giving me this interview opportunity.
George Waldron: Our pleasure. So Mr. Ong, this is your fourth job interview in four years. How are you feeling?
Dan Ong: A bit discouraged and nervous. I still believe that I can pull through and bring your club to greater heights but am not so confident.
George Waldron: Is that so? Well, that would be something you'll have to work on if you want a job here
Dan Ong: Will do
George Waldron: Anyway Mr. Ong, we aren't a prestigious club as compared to your previous clubs. We are a very very small club. How do you feel about that?
Dan Ong: As I've told my previous employers, the club will eventually get better over time, hence the position of the club right now doesn't factor my interest in a club. What factors my interest is the faith of the board in me.
George Waldron: Interesting answer Mr. Ong. I like that answer very much. Well, we would like to hire you as the manager of Eastleigh. Despite your past, we believe that along the way you have learned things and we hope to use those experience to manage this club and get us a step forward.
George Waldron: All that left is your decision. I know that it might be discouraging and hard as you haven't been in good terms with your previous clubs and you're gonna manage a club that is expected to be relegated for sure.
Dan Ong: I'll take the job. I've got nothing to lose, however that doesn't mean I won't try my best for the club. I will do my best to get us out of this league and eventually to the Barclays Premier League.
George Waldron: That's great to hear. Let's get started with the contract talks then.
Well, my last attempt as a manager. The contracts fits it well, a one year contract. If it goes bad, I'm gone. If it goes well, we go again.
*I take a seat in the conference room*
Dan Ong: Good morning everyone, I'll be taking questions now
Billy Allen from The Football League Paper: Good morning Dan, we would like to ask, what's going through your mind right now?
Dan Ong: Well, I'm currently a manager of a team so what's on my mind is bring in players to strengthen the team and increase the depth
Billy Allen: This is your fourth job in four years, do you regret leaving Celtic after having a successful spell with them?
Dan Ong: Not at all, I believe that I chose the right decision for myself despite the unfortunate spells I had in my previous clubs.
Billy Allen: Everyone is saying you've been on a constant step down of who you're managing. What do you comment about that?
Dan Ong: Everyone is entitled to their opinion. To me, I don't see the reputation of the club. I see the board's desire to have me and their backing of me.
Billy Allen: Rumors say that you might be leaving the managerial scene if you get sacked again, any comments on that?
Dan Ong: Well, all I can say is I'm keeping my options right now.
Dan Ong: That will be it for today guys. For the fans of Eastleigh, I hope I can make you proud. Let's do this together.
#386877 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
It's the 15th of January 2019, and I got fired again.
Maybe I'm no prodigy manager. Maybe I'm just lucky to manage Celtics and that's why I won trophies there. Maybe I should just quit being a manager, that my story is over.
Let me walk you guys through the events that happened
November went decent compared to the previous months.
We didn't have any big defeats except for the 3-0 defeat to Coventry, we drew twice and won one game
2 high scoring games of 6 goals and 10 games in total.
December went better again.
We won 2 games and one draw.
Losing once by a narrow margin and got beaten 4 - 1 by Leyton Orient.
At this rate, the board called me in and told me I am going to get terminated as we've been hovering in the relegation for too long and not much improvement has happened. I agreed for a mutual termination as they gave me enough time and I just couldn't do anything. They told me I can have some few games to say goodbye to the players and the fans.
And this marks the end of my time at Tranmere Rovers
At this rate, I'm very discouraged to manage again.
From the heights of winning two cups in a club, from gradually getting fired of not meeting expectations to get a team to do better.
A lot of my friends and families are saying "Dan, you need to stop living in a spiral dream. You've done your time at Celtic, and you should have stayed there but yearned for other stuff. And now you're paying the price and your faults are now showing. You should just come back to Singapore and continue studying."
I'm at a complete lost. I'm not sure what I should do now.
#386872 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
Yeah wouldn't have thought of going to England this soon, not to mention a club name Tranmere Rovers. W
How is it interesting though? Is it because it's a rare club that someone manages? Just curious.
And yeah, I hope I can bring them to the Premiere League.
#386871 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
So, Tranmere Rovers, a team with not much budget to bring in players with money.
It was such a weird feeling for me considering I had more than 1 million at least for my past few jobs. It was such an unfamiliar feeling.
However, I've decided to look onto young free transfers that were released by other clubs.
We did A LOT of business. Tranmere was basically a ghost team only having a few players in the squad when I took over.
We brought in a total of 23 players to play for the first team and to increase our depth. A lot of them are home grown and youths ranging from 18-21 years old.
Yes, that's right. Call me the Wegner of Sky Bet League Two if you want. We're gonna build a young core with decent skills to bring us to glory.
Our squad looks like this right now:
As for our matches, it didn't go well so far.
For our friendlies, it went sorta decent?
We won Crusaders and Lancaster 3-2 and 2-0 respectively but they aren't that good in a sense.
We got beaten into pulps by Arsenal Under 23 as Iwobi tore us a new hole with a hat trick.
For our first games in the league and cups, it went horrible.
We won NOTHING. Absolutely nothing, we got beaten to pulp by Luton. Chesterfield beat us in extra time with a total of 12 goals in the game.
It was a bad start to get out of relegation
You think August was better? HELL NAW. Okay.. maybe a bit better.
We won our first official game against Bradford City and a 3-1 win against Grimsby who are doing worse than us in the league.
Other than that, our ass got whoop left right and center.
Yeah let's just say I'm still doing a bad job at getting the team out of relegation. We lost every game except against Notts Co who we won 3-1 against.
Can I just give Man Utd a stick up their ass. They played Mauro Icardi, Marcus Rojo and Pepe. Are you kidding me? I was so mad when I saw Mauro Icardi in the scoring sheet. It was definite overkill. But oh well.
May God have blessing on me as I continue the season with a horrible record so far. Although, the Board has assured that they're not worried and are still giving me time to work on the squad. I really do hope I'm able to repay their trust with wins and promotions and trophies.
#386849 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
Tranmere Rovers is an English club founded in the year 1884 that is currently playing in the Sky Bet League Two and have just been promoted from Vanarama National last season.
Known as the Super White Army (heh.. had a slight chuckle reading this out in my head) or the Rovers, they play their home games at Prenton Park which holds adequate training and youth facilities. The club also has an average junior coaching and fairly basic youth recruitment network.
Surprisingly, their rivals are Liverpool, Everton and Wrexham. How are your rivals both in the Barclays is beyond me. It's like you'll face them once every 5 years, yet they're your rivals. But hey, who am I to argue right?
The club has a trophy cabinet of 4:
Checkatrade Trophy (1990)
English FA Trophy (2017)
JD Welsh Cup (1935)
English Third Division North (1938)
#386848 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
After a 6 months of break, I finally got my first job interview.
I guess it is hard to find a job after you're fired. You will be overlooked by clubs in the same reputation as your last.
It was a good 6 months break though, I got to go hiking and enjoy the German culture as I used up my earnings from Celtic and Darmstadt.
I got to study more about the game from the stands just like another audience of the game and learned a lot from it.
I guess it's finally time to put it into works.
Tranmere Rovers offered me a job.
*The phone rings*
Andy Preston: Hello, is this Dan Ong?
Dan Ong: Hello, this is Dan speaking.
Andy Preston: Hello, this is Andy Preston from Tranmere Rovers. We were looking for some managers for our club after the sacking of our last managers and we managed to find your contact through your agent. We would like to bring you in for an interview if that's fine with you.
Dan Ong: Yes, that will be fine. I will be there in the soonest convenience of your choice.
Andy Preston: That is great to hear. We will be seeing you soon.
*The call ends*
England, the place where the Barclays Premiere League is held.
I never thought I'll ever travel here for football purposes.
As a young kid, I always watched the Barclays Premiere League. It was and still is the most popular league up til now.
I'm a Liverpool fan as a kid, supporting them after watching their Istanbul finals performance. It was my first ever game and it gave me goosebumps for the whole entire minute and penalty shoot out. The fans of Liverpool is what really dragged me in to the club.
That was when I learned what passion felt like. I enjoyed the process Liverpool went through, even the struggles.
Hopefully I'll be able to reach the Barclays Premiere League some day and win the league and even the Champions league. For now, I need to concentrate on landing this job.
*As I reached Birkenhead, I went to meet with the Andy*
Andy Preston: Good afternoon Dan, how was the flight?
Dan Ong: It was fine. How was your morning?
Andy Preston: Fantastic, had some breakfast with the family and an enjoyable jog. Anyway, let's cut to the chase. You've been to Celtic, one of the most prestigious club in the world and won two cups there and left. Why was that?
Dan Ong: I felt like I couldn't stand the pressure of just facing the expectation of winning every year and failure to do so would mean that my job is in tremendous danger due to their dominance.
Andy Preston: And what makes you think trying to get out of relegation is any better?
Dan Ong: I'm not saying it's any better, but I feel like there's more grace in getting relegated when you're trying to escape relegation than not winning the league when there's literally no other team that could compete
Andy Preston: And how about your Darmstadt, why were you sacked?
Dan Ong: Well, my stint there wasn't the best. I had a lot of drawn games and a few games won. The board were unhappy and gave me an agenda to meet. I failed to meet the agenda by 1 point, not to mention I had to do a entire revamp of the team as a lot of the players wanted to leave due to the bigger clubs wanting them and the players not wanting to stay after being relegated.
Andy Preston: And you think if we ever get promoted our players won't get taken away from us?
Dan Ong: I mean that would probably be the case, but given the scenario I was in and my experience, I think you would at least have some agreement that it was a big task for me to handle.
Andy Preston: Well, why did you accept the job offer from us. I mean from Celtic to Darmstadt was maybe a small step down but going to Tranmere will be a huge one. Are you not worried about your reputation?
Dan Ong: Reputation doesn't really matter to me. What matters to me is the support of the board when I manage the team and the fans are happy. Regardless of where I go, I just want backing from the club.
Andy Preston: I see. Getting into this job won't be as easy as your previous clubs, you do know that right? We won't have much money to give for transfers.
Dan Ong: Yes I understand, but I'm willing to learn if you're willing to take the risk
Andy Preston: Well, if that's the case, then I'm happy to welcome you Mr. Ong. I'm hoping you are the man to bring us to greater heights.
Dan Ong: For real?!
Andy Preston: Yes. I've been following your stints and I do agree that your last club was in between harsh and justifiable. They were expected to fight for promotion but you put them in relegation battle. However, when they gave you the objective you did almost meet it, just missing out by 1 point and that is a harsh decision. I believe that you have potential to be a great manager, it just that you need time to go there.
Dan Ong: W-W-Wow. Thank you Mr. Preston. I'm very delighted to hear such compliments. I thank you for such faith and praise and I promise you I will give my 101% in this job.
Andy Preston: Great, we'll send you your contract soon and you can get started. I'm very excited to see what you can bring for the team.
And just like that, I'm part of Tranmere Rovers.
Although the pay I'll be getting is significantly lower than the previous clubs I've managed, I am more than happy to take it after the interview. I hope that this will start the revival of my career.
#386845 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
Hey guys, the verdict has been given on my stay.
But first, let me walk you through the events that took place.
We first drew against Braunschweig with a dominant performance of 14 shots attempted to 4 and 73% possession to 27%
Point achieved: 1 | Points required: 10
We again got a draw with no goal against Aue. It was a fairly dominant game by us with 13 shots to 6 and 59% to 41% possession
Points achieved: 2 | Points required: 10
We get a narrow 1-0 win against Augsburg. Fairly even match with even 9 shots from both sides and possession of 56% to 44% which we led in.
Roman Bezjak got us the goal to give us 3 points
Points achieved: 5 | Points required: 10
We got another win against Dresden. A comfortable 3-0 win against them with a very dominant performance of 15 shots to 2 and 54% to 46% possession.
A Stuart Bannigan goal and a brace from Mats Kohlert gets us the 3 points.
Points achieved: 8 | Points required: 10
We fixed some friendly matches for our players to continue being on match fitness rather than resting and losing match fitness for our last game which is our deciding game
And now, the fifth game of our agreement is against Munchen Lions. They're 18th in the league and a lost or a draw will ensure my termination.
And the result is...
We drew 1-1 against them with a fairly even match although we dominated a bit more with 14 shots to 8 shots and 51% to 49% possession
Points achieved: 9 | Points required: 10
And yes.. that means I am terminated
I was devastated because I was just a point away, and the board didn't look at that. Rather they were really strict with the agreement and have decided not to overlook the fact that I was only a point away.
And now, from a manager who was dubbed a prodigy after winning two competitions with Celtic in his first season and without any experience before, is now dubbed as a fluke after my spell at Darmstadt.
There are jobs available, but I'm a bit discouraged. I will be keeping my options open if any team is interested.
Applying for a job for me right now seems like a dumb thing to do after getting fired so I will be studying and observing teams to learn how to be a better manager as I await for my next venture.
#386793 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
Oh yeah, it's a real pain. This is my first FM so I'm not too good at it yet.
Hopefully I can get out of it too myself.
I appreciate the compliment though, I hope you enjoy it as time passes by! I'm juggling around to make it look nicer and all so any feedback is appreciated!
#386773 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
Things aren't looking so great. In 3 months I've only been able to achieve 1 win. The board is definitely not happy. I feel the pressure now. The pressure that I am 100% definitely underachieving and disappointing everyone. The crowds are chanting my name to be out while I see the players are definitely discouraged with the run we're in.
Inevitably, the board has called me to a meeting.
Sebastian Breuer: Hello Dan, It's been a while since our last meeting
Dan Ong: Good day to you Mr. Breuer
Sebastian Breuer: I will just cut straight to the chase, we are unhappy. The fans are unhappy. The players are unhappy. We are underachieving by a lot, we were expected to fight for promotion and now we're in the relegation. Your ass is on fire right now Mr. Ong
*My heart races and I start to sweat*
Dan Ong: I know that things aren't doing so well now but you guys have to give me a bit more time to figure out things
Sebastian Breuer: Mr. Ong, we had a lot of belief that you were the right man for the job. During your pre-season you did so well, but during the season itself, you're doing so horrible. You've only won 3 games and we're currently trying to get out of relegation. Explain to us why we should give you more time when we've given you 5 months to figure out stuff.
Dan Ong: Give me a bit more time please.
Sebastian Breuer: Well Mr. Ong, we'll give you time. In the next 5 games, we require 10 points from you. If you do not get 10 points in the next 5 games, you will be terminated and will start finding a new job. You may now see yourself out.
I left the room. Discouraged. Distraught. Disbelief.
A few months ago I was dubbed one of the up and coming managers and now I'm down to the worst again. That I was a fluke. Maybe this is really me. Maybe I'm really not qualified for a managerial job. Maybe I should just quit?
Well, we are starting off in a bad foot with a 1-1 draw against Braunschweig but I guess it isn't that bad considering they're on the top of the league.
#386761 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
My first few games in charge went great.
Playing a new system of having a Target Man striker was new to me, but I decided to utilize what was in my disposal.
Terrence Boyd was an eye catching player during the whole friendly games as he had 2 hat tricks (against FC Nantes and against Bellinzona)
Denys Oliynyk also scored 3 goals during the friendly games.
We've been on a.. decent run so far I guess? I wouldn't say I'm disappointed because I'm not sure how good the team is in real life but in my opinion starting of with 2 wins, 3 draws and 1 loss isn't that bad.
Considering the fact that we lost a lot of our key players due to their ambitions to play in the top leagues, they basically abandoned ship when the team relegated
I'm hoping for a turn of event soon enough with all the new players that we brought in, hoping that they can contribute loads to our fight for promotion
The team that we have formed after our transfers looks like this:
I was honestly worried about our squad was lacking in depth and that our key players slowly left one by one, but in the end, it turned out okay in a sense that in my opinion, we brought back in some decent players and increased the depth in our squad.
#386754 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
TRANSFER IN (£10,500,000):
Stuart Bannigan £500,000 and £6,250 p/w
Greg O'Neil £125,000 and £575 p/w
Igor £1,800,000 and £3,600 p/w
Ebenezer Assifuah £2,100,000 and £14,500 p/w
Vincent Muratori £725,000 and £18,500 p/w
Marcus Fraser £550,000 and £2,200 p/w
Anderson £700,000 and £12,000 p/w
Mats Kohlert (on-loan)
Veysel San £78,000 and £9,000 p/w
David Grozinger £110,000 (£245,000) and £1,000 p/w
Andreas Luthe £150,000 and £8,250 p/w
Lawrence Shankland £400,000 and £2,600 p/w
Clemens Schoppenhauer £675,000 and £9,7500 p/w
TRANSFER OUT (£9,500,000):
Yannick Stark to Heidenheim for £275,000 (£350,000)
Aytac Sulu to Crystal Palace for £1,400,000 (£1,900,000)
Sandro Sirigu to Frankfurt for £725,000
Markus Steinhofer to Braunschweig on loan
Armin Itter to Greuther Furth for £150,000
Dominik Stroh-Engel to Bremen for £205,000
Michael Esser to Bremen for £2,000,000
Marcus Fraser to Patrick Thistle on loan
#386716 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
It's July 12 2017. Transfers has been confirmed in and out of Darmstadt.
In my last discussion, I was talking praises about having Jerome Gondorf and how I plan on utilizing him as the heartbeat of the midfield. By the tone of how I'm saying this, you guys would have probably guessed that he has parted ways with us due to his ambitions to stay in the top flight which we could not offer or even the assurance that we will be in the top flight next season.
He is now part of Hoffenheim who joined them for a initial fee of £2,800,000 which will increase to £4,400,000
Marcel Heller has also announced his desire to move away after Darmstadt has been relegated to the lower league. He was a valuable asset to the team with his experience. He parted ways to Hamburg for the cost of £1,300,000.
Immanuel Hohn has also parted ways with us for the cost of £375,000 which will increase to £475,000
However, our transfer window wasn't just outs all the time. For our part, we did bring in some decent players in return to buff up our squad after our losses and to increase depth in our squad. I'm still planning to bring in more players but it's a trouble due to the position we're in and the budget we're given.
#386581 The Journey of Dan Ong, The Singaporean Manager
AWMG
Die Lilien have been relegated to the German Second Division after their 2016/2017 season.
My personal objectives and the board's objectives for this season matched, which is fighting for promotion and reaching the 2nd round of the German Cup.
I have been given the freedom of no expectation to play a certain way or to bring in certain type of players.
I've been given £3,610,000 and £289,000 p/w to work with this transfer window
Our best player is Jerome Gondorf who plays in the central midfield, defensive midfielder and attacking central midfielder.
I'll be looking to utilize him as our Ball Winning Midfielder and be the heartbeat of the midfield.
Another player that catches my eye is Aytac Sulu, a Turksih defender who plays as a center-back.
I hope to utilize him as a commanding center back who will be in control of everyone in the defense and make sure everything is intact.
The rest of my team, in my opinion and no offense if I offended any players that might be seen as a club hero by the fans who support the club in real life, are very very average or below average and there aren't any young hot prospect that we can nurture to lead the team in the future.
For this transfer window, I plan on bringing in bargain players who can contribute right away and make an impact. The midfield is especially underwhelming in depth.
Judging by the strikers that they have, long balls or crossing into the box is their style of play as both Dominik Stroh-Engel (above stat) and Terrence Boyd (below stat) have high headings stats while their speed is pretty average.