FM: Cannes

[RPI-Fan]

Cannes

July 2004

I'm not going to go and do a detailed rundown of the roster - I know that will make things tough to read for a little while but it will make things more enjoyable for me. There's really not much to do in July - I don't like playing friendlies so I'm not going to worry about scheduling any; our regular season in the French National Division (the 3rd out of 3 levels) starts in the second week of August.

This is a very interesting challenge; I'd equate the French National Division with the English League 2 (4th out of 6 levels), but I've been given a L700k (L = British pound sign), and because of this am obviously expected to win right away - in fact the board want me to win the division.

I figure I'll go over my overall plan here... basically what I'd like to do is not make any signings at all for several months - probably not even until the January transfer window. I want to get the club into a stable position without adding to the wage bill or purchasing any players. In the past I've had trouble keeping finances under control so I figure if I'm only adding one piece at a time to the puzzle it will be easy to maintain.

[RPI-Fan]

August 2004

We get a fabulous start to the season - winning our first three games, then drawing nil-nil at home to Croix de Savoie, before continuing our shutout streak with 1-0 and 2-0 wins over Tours and Cherbourg. We stand atop the table with 16 points, three clear of second place Rouen. As was our plan, we haven't brought any new faces in. The only player we've brought into camp is a young left winger named Sahim Eslahi Oman Bani - a French lad also with Algerian ancestry. He's only in on a month-long trial to get in a few matches with our reserve side. In his first appearance he was god-awful (Assistant Manager Frank Passi takes care of the reserve and U-18 squads), but got things together with a solid performance and a goal in his second time out. I don't expect him to make a big first team impact, but I think I'll sign him as a prospect as my scout Jean Varraud (who is extremely good), thinks he has some promise.

We wrap up the month with a 1-nil road win to 6th place Besancon - our goalkeeper, Jean-Daniel Padovani earned MoM honours - he's been stellar thus far, allowing 3 goals in 7 league matches (keeping 4 clean sheets). The 24 year old doesn't appear to be a star on paper, but to me thus far he has been great. I certainly hope he can keep up the strong play. Forward Nicolas Girard notched our only goal, heading in off a great cross from left winger Gregory Beranger.

This sees us conclude the month with a 6-1-0 record (6 wins, 1 draw, and 0 losses), with Roeun still sitting three points behind us for the league lead. (The National champion earns auto-promotion to League Deux, while the 2nd and 3rd place teams play in a playoff to move up to the next level).

That young winger I mentioned - Sahim Eslahi Oman Bani knotches another goal as our reserves are smashed. However, it's enough for me to offer the lad a contract to join our reserve team - Eslahi Oman Bani comes aboard for basically pennies, and we'll hope he pans out into something. He should see regular time with our reserves.

[RPI-Fan]

September 2004

-----------------------------

Now I'm going to take a look at our overall roster that I have a little better feel for the team:

Goalkeepers

Jean-Daniel Padovani - As I mentioned, has played beyond his ratings thus far with brilliant stats. Clearly our #1 guy - no one else has even gotten a sniff in the net.

Sullivan Jous - 20 years old; this is his first professional team. Unfortunately for him, Padovani outclasses him in most ways - Jous is perhaps a better athlete, but as long as Padovani is dominating like he has thus far, Jous will only play in non-league competitions or when Padovani is injured.

Defenders

Frederic Tatarian - Veteran central defender who has had a pretty good career, playing as a youngster for French powers Marseille. Banner year came in 1998-99 when he played 36 games for Nice. Recently has bounced around with League Deux and non-league teams.

Camille Oponga Ayessa - The Congo national manager likes him in FM; he's already earned three caps with the international side. Can play on the right or in the center, and is a big strong defender. Great team leader as well (most of our defenders have this trait). Not a great technical player, but as I mentioned just a bruising-type defender (as they would say in hockey - a stay-at-home defenseman).

Michael Cerielo - Youngster has come up through the Cannes youth system. Now as a 20-year-old he'll get a crack with the first squad. Not all that talented, but the fact that he can play out left makes him pretty marketable.

Cedric Vanoukia - Young central defender has been hurt and is out until December. Another defensive defenseman - nothing special, really.

Derek Decamps - Another young central defender isn't too promising. Pretty hard worker, but not a great athlete and certainly not very strong technically. Purely a backup at this point.

Kamal Tassali - 23 year old fullback is at make-or-break time for his career - bounced around with Sochaux, a League Un team for a couple years as a teenager, and spent last season with National Division rival Besancon gaining valuable experience, playing 34 games. Another great team leader, and has good skills all-around. Definitely more capable of going forward than some of our other defenders.

Gregory Beranger - Pretty smart left fullback who definitely isn't very skilled, but knows how to play the game. Played 28 games with Cannes last season, so there's definitely something to like about him.

Midfielders

Jean-Charles Cirilli - Young, big, ballwinning defensive midfielder. Saw significant action with Nimes of the National Division last season - will have to fight for his spot in the Cannes side.

Fabrice Reuperne - One of few veterans on the team at 28 years old, is definitely our first choice defensive midfielder. Was a regular for Romorantin in the National Division each of the past two seasons, and will be for us barring some major problem. Solid athlete and also a solid-skilled player - not great at any one thing, but very good all around.

Mehdi Karaja - Local guy is really not very talented, and is definitely our third choice defensive midfielder behind Reuperne and Cirilli. I'll probably throw him in the reserves because he really won't help us at all in the first squad. I would like to keep him on board as he grew up a Cannes fan (living in Cannes) and we're his only team.

Dominique Aulanier - Another veteran (30 years old) can play anywhere in the attacking midfield. In my base 4-1-2-1-2 formation, he is very useful as he can play on the left wing, right wing, or the "point" position, withdrawn behind the two strikers. Played 5 seasons with Nice before spending the past couple years bouncing around in the lower French leagues. Played 20 games for Cannes in 02-03 tallying 4 goals in 20 appearances. He will see the pitch a lot mostly because of his great versatility.

Guillaume Boronad - Quick attacking midfielder can play in the center or on the right. He is a pretty good crosser of the ball, so ideally I'll play him out left, but since we don't have many options on the right, Aulanier will play there meaning Boronad might need to play in the "#10" spot. (For those who don't know, the "#10" in soccer is the playmaker who floats around freely behind the two strikers. It is VERY common to hear this reference in South America. Landon Donovan is a classic "#10". The "#6" - less commonly used - refers to the ball-winning midfielder or "destroyer". Chris Armas is a classic example of this.) He is a good crosser of the ball, though, so I would like to keep him out wide left when possible.

Nicolas Rabuel - Left winger is a lot like Boronad but not quite as good. Unfortunately, he is out until the new calender year, so will have a hard time working his way into the squad if we're still successful. Nevertheless, if he gets in form could play a part manning the left flank for us .

Forwards

William Correa - Pretty ordinary attacker - has pretty good on-the-ball skills and some speed, but all-in-all not that special of a player. Basically is our third choice in the withdrawn striker role - I don't really think he is aggressive enough to play up top, but he isn't skilled enough to be our regular #10.

Kamel Ghilas - Fast forward who can play on the left or center, is a lot like Correa. He is faster, though, and is very focused. Might get a sniff at left wing, but again there isn't really much of a spot for him in this side. Before I came in he was listed to be loaned out (and feels he is too good for such a designation), but since he could gain more experience playing somewhere else I won't take him off the loan wire.

Stephane Lecocq - Basically the same as the above two guys - decent speed, alright on the ball, but not really all that great at anything. Will rotate through the main attacking roles (attacking mid and forward), but again I don't think he has the killer instinct necessary to play up top.

Nicolas Girard - Definitely a little more class in this 26 year old - he played six seasons in a row with lower-league Beauvais - tallying 25 goals in over 150 appearances. Pretty solid on the ball, and I think he can prove to be a very good set-up man up top, partnering with a variety of different strikers.

Laurent Leroy - A lot like Girard - definitely one of, if not the most, talented player on the team. 28 years old, had his banner year in 1999-2000 with League Un Paris Saint-Germain (who have dabbled with European competition) playing in 27 games and scoring 8 goals. I don't think he'll really mesh all that well with Nicolas Girard, but I will certainly give it a shot. However, him and Girard are more likely to only see the pitch together with one as the withdrawn forward and the other a striker.

Habib Sissoko - Veteran player from Mali at 33 years old. Has been all over Europe, with Cannes being his 10th different team in 10 seasons! Has played in France, England (with Preston and Torquay), Portugal, and Belgium. Not wildly successful anywhere until the past couple of seasons, when he scored a handful of goals first for Nimes (French National Division) and then Brest last season (League Deux team). The most likely candidate to be our pure finisher, but he has no speed at all, and isn't as great of a goal-poacher as I'd like. For now he is out for about two more weeks with a groin injury, but when he comes back will presumably be the first choice to play alongside one of our set-up forwards.

-----------------------------------

Whew! That's a big help for me. I now have a pretty strong idea where I'm good and where I need help. My biggest concern is up top, where I could really use a pacey forward. Right now all my guys are kind of solid all-around forwards, but none specialize in really pressuring the defense with either size or speed. So I'm definitely going to keep my eyes out for a good striker who can stretch the defense.

In the back, I think I'm fine, with a nice mix of veterans and solid youngsters, with the same being said for the midfield. My goalkeeping situation should be fine, I think - Jean-Daniel Padovani looks good on paper and looks even much better on the pitch.

We start out the month of September with a disappointing nil-nil home draw to Roye - We out-shot them 11-3, but only hit the target with 1. Padovani racks up his 5th straight shut-out, though! The one save he had to make today was a big one - stopping a one-v-one after quick long ball over the top of our central defense. The next Saturday, however, we finally drop a league match, as 4th place Libourne St-Seurin scores a pair of 2nd half goals (and of course ended Padovani's shutout streak) to knock us off 2-nil on the road. All in all, I'm not all that disappointed. We're finally getting healthy, and setting our lineup rotation, and at the same time getting into a less strenuous schedule. We play one game a week for most weeks up until the middle of November when the French cup starts. We aren't very deep - I hope we can open up a little bit of a lead in the National Division title race in that time (we currently sit in 2nd, two points behind Rouen - and two ahead of Libourne St-Seurin for 3rd).

Coming off this loss, the boss of Valenciennes talks trash about me - the past few times this has happened, I've let it slide and just remarked that I think the other managers have a good team. This time, however, I'm fed up. This jerk, Daniel Leclerq, was talking smack last week as well, and he drew that match nil-nil. His team sits in 8th place in the National Division - I just can't put up with junk like this. I tell the media that I don't like Leclerq at all - most of my veteran players seem to like this, and a couple remark that they think my personality meshes well with theirs. That's great and all, but I didn't make those comments to earn the respect of my players. I did it to tell this guy to not let this asshole walk all over me.

Striker Habib Sissoko is health for this match - I'm going to put him back in the lineup. We've been held scoreless in the last two games, and have tallied just five goals in the past six games. We need to get something going - my scout Jean Varraud is keeping his eye on a couple of players, but I don't really see a high-level striker yet worth persuing, so my current guys will still have a good chance to earn their starting spots. After Habib Sissoko gets us started in the 4th minute, we give up a second half equalizer and end up with just a draw at home. It feels like we lost points here - we really could have badly used a win in this one. I still need to find a striker to really put pressure on opposition defenses.

We receive some very bad news after the match - defensive midfielder Fabrice Reuperne is out for about a month with a sprained ankle. We do have some depth at the position, but he was definitely a starter for us. On the road to seventh place Valence, Sullivan Jous will get a start as Padovani isn't in great spirits, and hasn't played stellar lately. Our next time out, we manage a road nil-nil draw to Valence, another top-half side. Points are great and all, but we need full points sometimes if we want to win the Division. We still sit in second place, now four points back of Rouen, and one point in front of Pau. Our defense is among the best in the National Division, but our offense is certainly no better than average. There is a player I think might help our striker woes. I didn't want to make a move at this point, but I think I've found someone who I need to jump on. Serge Ayeli, from the Ivory Coast, is pretty pacey and is talented on the ball. I think he'll be a perfect player to really stretch my opposing defenses is and free up some space for our other attacking players. Nice's Ayeli, a 23 year old, is valued at L450k, but is listed for a price of under L100k. I make a bid for him worth just L70k up front to see what Nice say. They don't seem to like this guy, so I think I might be able to get him for an even lower price than that for which he is listed. The transfer wouldn't go through until january 1st, of course, when the transfer window opens. Nevertheless, I'd like to get Ayali all squared away well before then if we're going to bring him in.

After we get a nice 1-0 win over FC Racing 92 on a Sissoko goal, Nice negotiate for Ayeli. They want a deal worth a total of less than L100k, which I'm willing to do. We tidy things up with Nice, get the deal, and just need to sign Ayeli to a contract. He's asking to be made our highest paid player (by a ton) - but we are well under our wage budget, and Ayeli is a very good player. Also, he would be taking a wage cut (he currently makes L2,200 per week with Nice, and would get around L1,700 per week for us). We play with the deal a bit, and not counting bonuses, will pay Ayeli L1,500 per week. However, we have to note that there are a couple of release clauses in there - a non-promotion release clause of L750k and minimum release fee of L1MM. In addition, Ayeli will get a sizeable raise if do indeed promote to League Deux.

[RPI-Fan]

October 2004

Sullivan Jous will get another match in goal; in fact the whole starting lineup will remain pretty similar to the one we ran out against Racing - hopefully we can get things opened up on the road to 20th place Sannois. Habib Sissoko puts us up in the first half, but we collapse a little past the hour and give up goals in the 71st and 72nd minutes, and however mighty our efforts, can't get a goal back to take anything from this game. A truly disappointing result, really - Sullivan Jous just lost his chance to make the goalkeeper situation a rotation system. The job is again Padovani's - it would have been nice to be able to rely on the "form of the day" - "le forme du jeu"??? (my five years of French can't remember how to say that in French - ugh!). I can't wait for Ayeli to come aboard in January - however, we really need to put some results together before then.

Fortunately, we do just that in a 1-nil win over Raon-l'Etape with a 90th minute goal from second half sub Nicolas Girard - we outshot them 14-nil in this match, but that wouldn't have meant anything without Girard's goal - it was really a thing of beauty. Right winger Dominique Aulanier switched the field to Gregory Boronaud to that left edge of the box, who squared for Girard, and the forward had an easy tap in to give us the win! That goal was just so huge - I praise Girard in the media soon after the match. I think when Ayeli comes aboard, we'll see Girard and Lecocq rotate through the attacking midfield slot, and Ayeli paired with Sissoko up top. We remain behind Rouen - the gap now two points, as we head into a road matchup against them. Rouen has an absolutely stellar defense, allowing just 6 goals in 14 games. Their goalkeeper, Jeremy Moreau, is very similar to our man in net, Jean-Daniel Padovani - both have kept six clean sheets thus far this season, both are 24 years old, and both have bounced around in the French League Un for a significant amount of time. It will be interesting to see if either keeper can be cracked - Roeun appears to have a better attack than us, so a goal seems more likely from them. My gameplan will be to come out with a defensive formation (still my base 4-2-2, but looking more like a 4-1-3-2 instead of a 4-1-2-1-2 for at least the first hour before we evaluate if we want to open the game up a little bit. It should be an interesting matchup - we're rather healthy for the duel.

After our right back, Camille Oponga Ayessa makes a horrid cross-pitch pass that is picked off, Cedric Mionnet hits a brilliant shot from 35 yards out that stuns J-D Padovani and gives the home side an early 1-nil lead. On the half-hour, however, Laurent Leroy (playing up top with Habib Sissoko - this is, at this point, or first choice strike pair) takes a long ball from Padovani with a great first touch, moves in on goal, and then slots it into the back corner of the net to level things. Just three minutes later, Guillame Boronad strikes a freekick from 30 yards out and it finds the top near corner to give us a 2-1 lead! Roeun threaten a little bit, but as we drop back to a 4-5-1 with two defensive midfielders in the second half an equalizer never really seems eminent. We close out the 2-1 victory, and move into first place in the National Division.

After a 1-nil home win over GFCO Ajaccio, I get some surprising news - I find out that all of the top three teams will be promoted - there will be no playoff for promotion. Right now we're in first by a point over Rouen, but hold a four point lead over third place. Hopefully we can continue our winning ways.

[RPI-Fan]

November

It's a pretty sorry November for us, as after getting a 1-nil home victory, we drop two in a row on the road, and then fall to Raon-l'Etape on the road in the French Cup. There's no major personal moves for us, so at this point I'm hoping to hold down the fort until our star striker Ayeli comes on board.

[Eaglesfan27]

Very nice read. I'll be following along.

[RPI-Fan]

Very nice read. I'll be following along.

Thanks.

I know there isn't much detail - would you prefer to see more, and if so in what part? Match reports, comments on personel, scouting news??

~rpi-fan

[jbmagic]

awesoem dynasty..


as a newbie i would love to see more detail...there alot of us who dont have the game and trying to get a good feel of this great game...

thanks

[RPI-Fan]

awesoem dynasty..


as a newbie i would love to see more detail...there alot of us who dont have the game and trying to get a good feel of this great game...

thanks

Thanks.

In January I'm planning on doing a mid-season review where I'll go through each player's performance - that actually really helped me get to know my team when I did it the first time.

Also, hopefully once I know my team better I'll feel more into writing stuff about them - right now a lot of the guys are just funny names, and not players that I feel like I've "connected" with (as silly as that sounds), so I'm not terribly interested in the team at the moment.

[BreizhManu]

Background of a few of your players :

Padovani : Was once considered one of the best prospects in France (behind Landreau and Frey), was even called in the French U-21 team. But he never reached those expectations, can still be a good starter for National and L2 clubs and a good backup for L1 ones.

Vaniouka : Once the captain of the French U-19 team, disappointed since then, since he is still young might have some potential left.

Tassali : Same as Vaniouka but with more consistency.

Cirilli : a former wingback, you should really try it there

Sissoko : The French researcher (who is a Brest fan) was a big fan of him last season, so he is probably overrated, you should take advantage of this :)

Overall you really have a good team that could even compete in L2, weakest position : midfield.

[RPI-Fan]

Overall you really have a good team that could even compete in L2, weakest position : midfield.

Thanks for the notes... I agree that I'm weak in the center of the park. I've been playing a 4-1-2-1-2 most of the time which leaves a huge hole in the midfield, but since I don't have anyone good to play there anyways I think it's a decent system. However, teams seem to be loading up the midfield on me and in my recent bad stretch of games that has been hurting me, so I've moved to a straight 4-4-2, playing one attack-minded guy and one defense-minded guy (but no special instructions to either).

I suspect that by the end of the season I'll tinker with a 3-1-3-1-2, or perhaps even a 3-2-3-1-1 if I'm feeling ambitious. Cirilli and Repourne are class holding middies, so it'd be nice if I could get them both out on the pitch, and up front I haven't gotten any reliable play. I'm starting to get something from Nicolas Girard, but he still isn't reliable, and Leroy has been downright awful after a brilliant start (I think he has one goal in the last 15 games or so). Hopefully when Ayeli comes in, he can prove to be a reliable goalscorer. I am genuinely excited for January 1st to arrive so he comes on board; we really need the help right now, I think.

[RPI-Fan]

December

We're really reeling now, after losing 2-nil at home to Nimes - Ayeli can't come in soon enough. We go on the road to 16th place Croix de Savoie, looking to come out with all the points. The only notable lineup changes are Jean-Charles Cirilli moving in at center mid, and Cedric Vanoukia at central defense. Nicolas Girard is suspended for an accumulation of yellow cards, so we'll see Sissoko and Leroy up top. Vanoukia has an auspicious return (this is his first match this season) from injury, as he fouls in the box within the first quarter-hour, and Croix converts to take a 1-nil lead. We push forward, though, and in the 40th minute Habib Sissoko heads home a Guillame Boronad cross to level things. Neither side can put one in in the 2nd half, and we'll walk out with a road point - not a bad result, but it slides us into 3rd place, just 1 point ahead of 4th place Pau.

We head home to take on Tours, who recently went on a 10-game tear to get out of the cellar, but still sit in just 15th place. I can't emphasize how badly we need full points here. However, wingers Dominique Aulanier and Guillame Boronad are suspended for yellow card accumlation. I make a radical switch to a box midfield for this match. I like this formation, though, because this allows me to get four quality attacking players on the pitch, with Lecocq and Girard playing directly behind Laurent Leroy and Habib Sissoko. Cedric Vanoukia will be back in central defense with Frederic Tatarian, and J-D Padovani lines up in net. Tours come out in a 3-5-2 with three central defenders, and three central midfielders. If my defenders and holding midfielders pass the ball well, I think our attackers can have a field day out on the pitch. In the 17th minute, after J-C Cirilli's cross is cleared our, Cedric Vanoukia plays short to Stephane Lecocq, who works a give-and-go with Leroy to get a relatively easy goal from the six yard box, giving us the 1-nil lead! Just moments later, Lecocq sends Nicolas Girard over the top of the thin Tours defense, and he continues to be our best finisher, as he slots it home to the corner of the net! The onslaught continues near the end of the half as Leroy slides Sissoko through for an open shot from the 18, which he bangs in off the post for the marvelous 3-nil lead! We take it easy in the 2nd half, even getting scrub Mehdi Karaja on the pitch for a little experience. J-D Padovani is named MoM with his six saves and of course the clean sheet, and it's really just a delightful victory in every way for the squad. This box midfield will be something I keep in the vault for future matches to surprise the opponent.

Unfortunately, everybody directly in front of and behind us also took three points, so our league standing doesn't change much at all. We do, however, get a three week break for winter, and when we return will travel to Cherbourg before hosting current series leaders Besancon. With Ayeli getting ready to come on board, things are looking up in Cannes right now.

[RPI-Fan]

I've got almost a year's worth more written up on this... is anyone interested in seeing them, and the dynasty continued, or should I just scrap the write-up?

[CraigSca]

I'm always up for another FM write-up. The fact that you've picked a non-English team to manage makes it all the more interesting. Up to you, but you'll have at least one reader :)

[Dawgfan1980]

I read it, with bated breath. It is a great dynasty, making me want to refire my old dynasty up meself. If it is worth it to you, you have a second reader here.

[RPI-Fan]

January 2005

A lot of our players' contracts are expiring, so we're taking care of that right now. I'll keep up to date if there is any controversy, but since our finances are very well set, I don't foresee any issues. As of right now, I plan on bringing back everybody whose contract is expiring; I'm also looking at some players who will be out of contract and eligible for Bosman transfers over the summer.

The deal with Cote d'Ivoire striker Serge Ayeli is finalized, and he arrives in our side from the Nice reserves. He tells the media that he is wants to revive his career after being stuck in the Nice Reserves - as a 23 year old thi sis make-or-break time for him. We also re-sign pretty much all of our expired contracts, for very fair prices. No concerns so far.

During the transfer window, I'm also keeping an eye out for some players to bring in to the squad - particularly those with pace. I don't think I'll be able to find a true quality center middie while still in the National Division, so I'm going to focus on getting speedy attackers and quality fullbacks.

Away to Cherbourg, we have several players out with injury, and have to scramble together a lineup. We move to a 4-1-3-1-1 formation, with new forward Serge Ayeli up top and Nicolas Girard right behind him. Nicolas Rabuel will see his first action of the year on the left wing as Guillaume Boronad slides to a central midfield role. J-D Padovani is still our clear number first choice keeper, though Sullivan Jous is certainly an option is Padovani leaves an opening. Cherbourg jump out to a quick 2-nil lead, and we never get any pressure as we drop all the points on the road. Padovani was very ordinary in net, and Nicolas Rabuel had a poor return to the lineup - we stay in 3rd place in the National Division, but are two back of 2nd place Sete, and six back of leaders Besancon. We have a home date with them next; it is essential that we get a result in that matchup. I think we'll go back to our box midfield that worked so well in our last home match.

In the week leading up to the Besancon match, Guillaume Boronad goes down with a month-long groin injury. It's frustrating, but we can work around it, I think. I'll probably go with the lineup that dominated Tours a month ago, with Girard and Lecocq behind Sissoko and Leroy. I might move Ayeli in for Lecocq, as the latter has been pretty invisible so far this season. I end up going with Ayeli and Leroy up top, with Rabuel and Girard behind them. Sissoko and Lecoqc are ready to come off the bench, though, and I won't hesitate to use them. Cirilli and Repourne are our defensive midfielders, with our standard backline of Cerielo, Tatarian, Oponga Ayessa, and Tassali. J-D Padovani is, of course, our goalkeeper. It's an up-and-down match, and after they hit the post in the first half from distance, sub Habib Sissoko is robbed on the doorstep early in the 2nd half. Neither team gets any other big chances, and the match ends an anti-climatic nil-nil. We had sixteen shots and six on the target, but couldn't ever push one in. I was, however, happy with the box midfield. It allowed us to push forward with the ball well and we certainly held our own against a quality side. We drop to fourth in the leaguet able, a point back of 2nd and 3rd.

On the road to 20th place Roye, I again can't emphasize how key a victory would be. Roye play a standard 4-4-2, so I'm again going to play the box midfield, trying to jam things through the middle. It's the same lineup as last time, except with Girard and Leroy up top, and Aulanier and Ayeli behind them. The other six and the keeper remain the same - we will really look to push the issue today as we desparately need points. It's a brilliant first half, as we get three garbage goals, two from Laurent Leroy and one from Nicolas Girard, to give us a 3-nil lead. We'll continue pushing forward in the second half, as I see no reason, really, to take our foot off the gas. We don't push for goals a ton in the second half, but walk out easy 3-nil winners as Leroy is named man of the match for his two goals and one assist. The victory pushes us up two second in the league table - six points back of Besancon, and two ahead of third, fourth, and fifth.

Next up is home to 9th place Libourne St-Seurin, and they play the same formation as Roye did. We'll stick with a very similar lineup, and the same tactic. Our guys are tired, though, so we make some subs. Up front, we'll see Girard with Sissoko, and Lecocq and Ghilas behind them. Repourne and Cirilli are our holding middies, with Vanoukia and Decamps in central defense - it's a young pairing there, but both have been respectable when given the opportunity. Tassali and Cerielo are our fullbacks, with Padovani in net. Again, we'll push forward with our attack, as we need full points. It's a poor start, as Libourne St-Seurin head in off a freekick early on, exposing our young central defense, but we ansewr back in the 41st minute as Habib Sissoko rockets a header to the far post after a nice cross from Michael Cerielo. It's time to bring on some new faces in the second half, as we clearly aren't giving a great performance so far. Laurent Leroy comes in up top, and Serge Ayeli will drop in behind the strikers with Girard. We'll leave the defense alone for now, but will probably plan to bring on Frederic Tatarian in the final quarter-hour or so of the match. Libourne get a pretty soft second half goal, and we can't ever pressure enough to equalize, and drop all the points at home. This team just simply cannot get consistent play, though having young, inexperienced defenders in this match didn't help us at all. Decamps and Vanoukia were not stellar at all, and Padovani played poorly.

As we head toward February, we sit a point ahead of 4th place and a point behind 2nd place - Besancon maintains their six point lead. I wish I could find more consistency with this squad, but it's been tough as our first XI is much better than our second XI. This was demonstrated in our last match as our central defense was pounded and attack was fairly anemic through most of the first half.

[RPI-Fan]

February

A youngster in my reserve system, 21 year old Cameroonian Serge Dim Etong, has been absolutely tearing things up lately, with 8 goals since the start of December (7 games). He doesn't have great attributes, but is a pure finisher, and I feel I must give him a shot to step up with the first team. I don't really think he'll be all that successful, but the man deserves a shot, so he'll get one. I'll probably play him with Serge Ayeli, hoping Ayeli can stretch the defense for him. Guillaume Boronad is back to training after his month-long injury, but won't be ready for our road tie with mid-table Valenciennes. Their manager, Daniel Leclerq, talked a little trash in the build-up, and it seems to have gotten to Nicolas Girard's head a little bit, so he'll start the match on the bench. I'm going to go with a straight 4-4-2 set-up, with two defensive-minded midfielders. Taking a page from the Eaglesfan27 dynasty thread, I'm going to use Fabrice Repourne and Jean-Charles Cirilli to man-mark from central midfield. What this means is my strikers must come back into the midfield a little bit to receive the ball from the defense, and our wingers must have stellar matches. This formation should be solid, though, as Valenciennes play a 4-3-3 with three inner middies, so hopefully our wingers will have a lot of space out on the flanks.

Etong and Ayeli are up front, Repourne and Cirilli in the center of the park, Rabuel out wide left, and Aulanier on the right, and a backline of Cerielo, Tatarian, Ayessa, and Tassali in the back. The fullbacks will push forward a little bit to get the offense moving. J-D Padovani is in net, though I considered giving Sullivan Jous the run out for this sizable matchup. Valenciennes get on the board early (this seems to be a growing problem for us, the opposition scoring early, especially on the road), with a great volley (and a bit of a softie from Padovani) from well outside the box, but Serge Ayeli tallies his first ever for Cannes near the end of the half, getting his head on the end of a Nicolas Rabuel cross. I don't make any subs at the end of the half, but Ayeli and Etong are both a little tired, and I have loads of attacking options off the bench (Girard, Leroy, and Sissoko). I'll give the forwards about ten minutes to make something happen before making a switch, though. After Gregory Beranger has to come on for an injured Michael Cerielo early, Ayeli is replaced by Laurent Leroy on the hour, and Nicolas Girard comes in for newcomer Serge Dim Etong with ten minutes to play. Girard makes the most of his time, however. Tassali plays a timely long ball to Aulanier over the top, who holds until the defender commits, and then sends the ball over to Girard who is wide open to slot it home into the back of the net for the 2-1 lead! Great goal, all started by a heads up pass by Tassali. Aulanier's play was strong, too; far too often I see players blast that ball over the bar. Aulanier, however, always seems to make the smart, unselfish pass. After five minutes of stoppage time, we were able to hold on, and come up with the huge road victory (over an irritating manager, nonetheless). Kamal Tassali is MoM, after totally dominating defensively, and also making a nice long ball to set up the game winning goal.

A week later, sitting in third place, we're home to a tired Valence squad. Valence play a straight-up 4-4-2, with agressive wingers. I'll counter with my box midfield, looking to have my six defensive players pressure the wings, in particular I'll have my defensive middies man-mark their wingers looking to shut-down their wing attacks. I'll play Leroy with Dim Etong up front, with Girard and Ayeli dropped in behind them. It's the same backline, and Cirilli and Repourne at defensive middie. Padovani is in goal, and we'll play with an attacking posture. It's a nil-nil scoreline at the half, but the only reason is some brilliant play form Jean-Daniel Padovani in goal. I decide to go back to our 4-1-2-1-2 system, with Rabuel coming in for Repourne (who tires rather quickly) to play out left. Serge Ayeli will try a new position, moving to the right wing, and Nicolas Girard remains behind the strikers - Dim Etong and Leroy. Dim Etong looked good in the first half, so Leroy is in danger of being subbed off in the first quarter hour or so of the second half. Neither team really gets much in the way of chances in the second half, and for us that means a nil-nil draw. I try desparately to mix up the attacking combinations as the game winds down, but can't get a goal in. The tie, which feels like a loss, moves us down to a tie for 4th place, three back of 2nd and one back of 3rd. I can't say it enough - we need better results, especially at home, if we want promotion.

After two goal-less games for Serge Dim Etong, I send him back to the reserves. He certainly wasn't bad for us, but also failed to make anything happen up top. He'll continue to develop in the reserves, hopefully, and maybe next season be an impact player for us.

[RPI-Fan]

March

At Racing, who we defeated 1-nil on a Habib Sissoko goal earlier in the year, we, as usual, need a result. I'll go back to a 4-4-2, with a couple of defensive inner mids, but attacking wingers. It's Boronad and Aulanier on the wings, and Leroy with Sissoko up top. The same back line and central mid, and Padovani again in goal. We concede yet another road first half goal, but this time can't ever come back from it, and drop all three points, falling three points behind 3rd place and the promotion line. There are now ten games to play for everybody, and we have ground to make up. I do, however, think we have the talent to make a move up the table into a promotion spot.

[RPI-Fan]

March - June 2005

I got frustrated, and really wanted to play without having to write something up for the dynasty. Without going into all the details, down the stretch we got results when we needed them most, and on the back largely of Serge Ayeli, who poured in 5 goals in his 15 appearances. We also got a few good bounces, getting the benefit of some crucial own goals (including one in the final game of the season that propelled us a 2-1 victory at home over bottom-feeders Wasquehal), keeping us in 3rd place, and promoting us to the French League Deux! There has been some personel movement early in the offseason, too. First, we took a look at some English lower league sides, and came up with some players that we wanted to get a better look at. Most notably, Lionel Morgan, who didn't have a club this past season. The 22 year old had played for Wimbledon before this year's campaign. Morgan, an Englishman, is actually a really big steal, I think. He is a fabulous crosser of the ball, and can take corners well. He has good pace up and down the left wing, can use either foot, and is even a threat on goal from distance. Unfortunately, he's injured for a couple more months (he's been hurt since July of last year), but should be ready to go near the start of the season. I think he will really add some depth to our wing attacks, if nothing else as a substitute.

Not too long after, National Division champions Besancon come calling for our attacking left fullback Nicolas Rabuel (who can also play on the left wing). I set a price significantly higher than his value (L100k, and he was valued at less than L20k), expecting them to shy away. Much to my surprise, however, they accept right away, with no strings attached. I could back out now, but would feel like a jerk if I did so. Instead, I consider myself lucky to make the deal. We have other options at left back (most notably Michael Cerielo), and definitely at left wing with the arrival of the young Brit Lionel Morgan. This helps our finances a bit, obviously.

I think that now, going up into the League Deux, I need a real impact player to help out the squad. Morgan is a very good, but unproven pick-up. I'd like to grab the leading goalscorer in the National Division this year - Libourne St. Seurin's Rolland Vieira. The 25 year old doesn't have extraordinary skills on the surface, but is a proven goalscorer (27 goals in 34 games last season). Unfortunately, though, while we contemplate whether to make a move, League Deux Chateauroux snap him up for L475k. I think I would have been willing to pay that much, but would have taken some negotiating, which St-Seurin didn't seem to be interested in. There are always other fish in the sea, though, and I'm sure we'll find someone.

[RPI-Fan]

July

In July, while we prepare for some pre-season warm-up friendlies (against some solid competition, too... we travel to Betis and star Spanish winger Joaquin, then host Belgian Jupiler side Standard, and finally wrap up by playing our own Reserves at Stade Pierre de Coubertin, our home stadium... Betis dominate us in their 1-nil victory, and we play poorly losing to Standard 3-1. We even have to come from behind to beat our, albeit much improved, Reserve side. I'd expect our Reserves to be very good this season. Last year, that put on a great run after their first ten matches to really move up the reserve table. This season, we are extremely deep and will freely rotate quality players into the reserve side to keep up fitness.)

We make a good deal of personel moves in July, starting with the acquisition of another young Englishman, this time a 19 year old striker, James Gibb. He is a pretty solid player right now, and our scout Jean Verraud seems think he might turn into something. He's signed on a free transfer, as he was a free agent, to a fairly modest contract (we're still very much under our wage budget), and for now he'll play with our reserves to get some experience. He was released by Bolton, and never got a sniff there of first-team action.

Next, we make a couple of inexpensive transfer signings. First, we get striker Mallo Diallo from Cherbourg, who didn't get to play much last season in the French National Division. Nevertheless, the 25 year old is a pretty good goal-poacher (which is exactly what we need), and three seasons ago scored 16 goals from Dijon. He costs us L16k, and gets an inexpensive contract. Then, we get a midfielder we've been coveting for a while - Anthony Castillo from Non-Division side Saint-Georges. He costs L26k, but is a very interesting player. He is a great passer of the ball, and I would like to give him a chance to be our set-up man. For Saint-Georges, he had 2 goals and 17 assists last season, so I think he might be able to fill a role nicely. Again, his contract is very manageable, so he is really more of an experiment than anything else. I imagine he'll frequently bounce up and down between the reserves and the full squard. Finally, we add some depth on defense, by bringing in Gilles De Oliveira from another Non-Division side, Viry. He costs us L30k and another insignifcant contract. He is young, at just 20 years old (Castillo is 23 years old). What I like about him, is that he might be a pretty good offensive central defender. He is a threat to shoot from distance, and miht be solid in the air on set pieces. He scored 5 oals in 32 games last season, which is a pretty nice mark for a defender. The season before, he had gotten a copule of cracks with League Deux Troyes, so clearly he has some talent. Again, he'll need to work his way into the top squad from the reserves, if he wants to get top-level action.

Finally, we add some more depth to our striking core with some loan players from dominant French sides First, Nicolas Cicut comes over from Marseille. Cicut is a big, pacey striker, but he isn't really deft on the ball. However, our scouts think the 21 year old has some potential, and having a power forward on board isn't going to hurt our depth. As usual, he'll have to work his way up from the reserves to get into the first squad. And lastly, we add a striker from Monaco, David Gigliotti. He is an athletic forward, and at just 20 years old is already a pretty cool, collected finisher in front of the net.

[RPI-Fan]

August

Our seasons open at fellow-promotees Pau. We come out with an attacking notion, as we'd really like to get a result against a presumably vulnerable side to kick things off. However, Pau get two second half goals and largely control the action en route to a deserved 2-nil win in front of their sizeable home crowd (they draw over 5,000 fans). Gilles De Oliveira plays in central defense, and frankly is awful. Our team is not very fit, and our usual gang and box midfield simply don't get the job done. Next, we don't have high aspirations as we host promotion favorites Sedan. They go up early on a couple of goals from Lamine Sakho in the first quarter-hour, but Fabrice Reuperne's header early in the 2nd half followed up by their central defender Jeremy Henin getting sent off give us some hope. That comes to nothing, though, as we're again outclassed and fall 2-1 at home.

Finally, though, with a very tired side after a lot of our guys are still recovering from the first two matches, we put something up on the big board when we travel to Le Mans, and play a smart tactical game, getting the game's only goal in the 2nd half from Laurent Leroy off of a Le Mans defensive blunder. We hold on the rest of the way, and walk out with our first League Deux victory! We used a slightly different lineup up top, with Serge Dim Etong and David Gigliotti at striker, and Serge Ayelli with Nicolas Girard dropped behind them. Our central defense was not the same either, with Cedric Vanoukia alongside Camille Oponga Ayessa. Vanoukia played a great game. Most notably, however, we threw Sullivan Jous into goal. He was brilliant, making 11 saves and never looking shaky in net. He earns a 10 for form, and we might be close to having an official goalkeeper controversy on our hands (J-D Padovani was very ordinary in our first two losses).

Next up is Troyes at home. They are off to an unbeaten start, though have drawn two straight home games. We don't make any radical changes to our lineup, though we'll come out with a new tactic. It's a 4-1-1-2-2, with the two attacking middies playing out on the wing. Castillo is on the right, and Boronad the left. We send Etong and Diallo up top, hoping to get them on the end of some crosses. Reuperne is in the middle of the park, with J-C Cirilli behind him. Our backline sees Beranger in for Cerielo, and Tatarian for Vanoukia. Pretty much all of these changes are fitness-related. Before too long, fortunately, we'll playing mostly one game per week, and will get more of a est lineup, I think. Finally, Jous stays in goal after his brilliant performance.

We play well for the first half hour, but in the 36th minute disaster strikes as Kamal Tassali plays a totally senseless ball through the middle which is headed home by Troyes for the 1-nil lead. Just god-awful judgement by Tassali, there, really. Just a couple minutes later, Beranger makes an awful clearance, and the shot from the 18 deflects off Oponga Ayessa and goes past Jous. Neither goal has really been his fault, at this point. We get some borderline chances in the 2nd half, but never really get that sense of urgency that I want to see. We fall 2-nil, and are unable to get into a solid position as the schedule is almost ready to slow down a litle bit.
ut,
We receive a bid from Chateauroux for Camille Oponga Ayessa, and while I'm willing to listen to a stellar offer, this one is far from that. They only offer us a very mediocre back-up central defender, which is ridiculous. It's a totally insane offer, and I'm tempted to just ignore it, but I think I'll insult them by demanding L500k for him. I just can't get over how insulting that offer they gave me is. A couple days later, they withdraw from negotiations - punks.

We now have another home match, this time hosting relegated Ajaccio. This is a tough match, and though they sit just behind us in 19th place, I don't expect a victory to be easy here. I move back to a more standard formation, this time around, a 4-3-1-2. Our strikers will look to receive the ball out wide, and defenders will stay at home. After the lapses we had last game, I don't want our fullback to have any excuses this time around. J-D Padovani does not go back into net, even though Jous wasn't extraordinary last time out. Nicolas Girard moves back into the attacking mid spot, playing behind David Gigliotti and Laurent Leroy. Boronad and Castillo man the wings, with Cirilli in the center of the park. Our back four remains mostly the same - Cerielo, Tatarian, Oponga Ayessa, and Tassali. Sloppy defense allows an early goal, and I'm disheartened that our back four that was so solid from last season has really fallen apart. Tassali has been a disaster thus far, and he's close to losing his spot. I make no changes, however, at halftime, and early on it pays off as David Gigliotti takes a Nicolas Girard feed from just outside the box, and softly curls it to the far post for the equalizer in the 52nd minute! It's his first goal for the club, and I hope he can put many more in this season! Gigliotti hits the post later, and Jous makes some great saves, but neither team get on the board. Jous again wins Man of the Match award, and I'm puzzled with what to do with the goalkeeping situation. Castillo was not very good out on the wing - I really look forward to when Lionel Morgan is healthy. I think he will really diversify our attacks, allowing us to swing crosses in and win some balls in the air in the offensive 18.

A few days later, we head to Istres for what should be a very tough road match. I'm not all that surprised when they put up a couple goals in the first twenty minutes for a 2-nil lead. However, in the 27th Tassali plays a great ball down the right flank for Aulanier, who makes a solid cross to Diallo who cooly finishes to cut the gap. Not too much longer, Aulanier plays a brilliant diagonal ball for Serge Ayeli, who gets into the box and surprises the keeper with an early shot that bends to the far post. Then, just before the end of the half, Sahim Eslahi Oman Bani (seeing his first ever top-squad action on the left wing) sends Ayeli through on a break, and he finishes for the 3-2 lead! After we weather a storm from Istres in the middle of the second half, Nicolas Girard, a second half sub, breaks right up the middle, and yet again we cooly finish the breakaway for the 4-2 lead late. Sullivan Jous made some big-time saves during Istres' 2nd half flurry, and that was key in keeping our confidence. This is really a superb road win - Eslahi Oman Bani wins man of the match and notches a pair of assists in his debut - with Lionel Morgan nearly healthy, we now appear to have ourselves a little competition for the left wing spot. I was also impressed with Mallo Diallo - he seems to have a knack for being in the right place in the right time. Overall, I'd say my offseason acquisitions (and two signings last season) have been smashing successes. Ayeli is a key cog in our attack, and our other new guys have really added depth to our side. I'll have more on that later.

We fight off some bids for Jean-Daniel Padovani, as September and the transfer deadline approaches. Although Sullivan Jous has taken over the starting keeper job, at least temporarily, Padovani was good last season and I don't want to lose the option of having him as a backup. Padovani doesn't seem to be upset by my (essential) rejections of these pitty bids (less than L25k), but now says that he thinks I don't appreciate his contributions to the team. Well, J-D, maybe if you didn't get entirely outclassed by the younger keeper in League Deux, I would appreciate you more!

[RPI-Fan]

September

Anyhow, the transfer deadline passes without incident, and we can now focus on League Deux and Cup play. I think we're starting to find our stride, and might be a force. We currently sit 14th in the league table, but are just four points back of the promotion zone. Stringing together a few quick victories might do a whole lot to change our league position.

Next up are fellow promotees Besancon at home. Besancon had been one of the teams bidding for J-D Padovani as the transfer deadline approached. We move back to a strict 4-4-2, because I want Girard on the pitch but feel he plays better from the center of the park than he does in a "#10" role. Ayeli and Gigliotti (as of right now our first-choice strike pair, I think, though there is tons of competition) are up top, with Englishman Lionel Morgan debuting on the left wing. Fabrice Reuperne is with Girard in the middle, and Dominique Aulanier is on the right. The backline is missing Oponga Ayessa, who is awway with Congo's national team (he is a regular in their defense as well as ours), so we line up Cerielo, Vanoukia, Cirilli, and Tassali. Vanoukia has been very good thus far this season, and with usual starter Frederic Tatarian out with a minor injury and frankly not playing all that well, I'm totally content to let Vanoukia have a shot at earning a starting job. Sullivan Jous is again in net, as the 21 year old is just dripping with confidence lately.

We seem to have the better of the play for most of the first half, but can never really get anything dangerous on net. In the 41st, however, Girard works with Reuperne to get the ball down the left flank to Lionel Morgan, who delivers an absolutely splendid early cross to be met by a running Girard at the six-yard box. Girard hammers home the header for the 1-nil lead, and I'm delighted to see our tactics of pushing the ball out wide work so well! Besancon make a valient push in the 2nd half, but Jous makes a couple of saves, and overall Vanoukia and Cerielo (who moved to central defense after Cirilli took a knock) were excellent commanding the backline. Winger Lionel Morgan was great on the left wing, and now I'd say there's a bona-fide contraversy for that position. Gigliotti wasn't great up top (nor was Serge Ayeli), and 2nd half sub Laurent Leroy didn't do much either. I guess that just means I'm still searching for that true top duo for up top.

Next we travel to a tough Nancy side, and will be happy to come out with any kind of result. We'll stick with a similar lineup and formation. Ayeli is with Diallo up top, with a midfield of Eslahi Oman Bani, Girard, Cirilli, and Aulanier. The backline sees Oponga Ayessa, with Cerielo out left, Tassali on the right, and Vanoukia also in the middle. Jous is again, of course, in net. It's a wide-open first half, but neither team can capitalize on numerous chances, and at the break the score is nil-nil. We can't really generate much offense in the second, while Nancy dominate and get a pair of goals to wrap up the home win. Jous looked weak on the second goal, so I think I might go back to J-D Padovani next time out. Eslahi Oman Bani was not impressive out left, nor was Aulanier on the right. This team still has holes, I fear, and we'll still look to work out our weak spots.

Just prior to our next match, a home clash with bottom-feeders Clermont, Fabrice Reuperne goes down for a month with a groin injury. It's not devastating, but certainly thins our depth in the midfield for a while. Against Clermont, we want to come out attacking and play positive football, as it is a very winnable match.

[BreizhManu]

wow, 8 months in one minute, your computer is fast http://dynamic2.gamespy.com/%7Efof/forums/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[BreizhManu]

Congrats for getting promoted, L2 level of play is way higher than National (bigger difference between L2 and National than L1 and L2) so let's hope you can do well.