Quote:
Originally Posted by RPI-Fan
Good attitude! What's your plan of action for the next 2 years?
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That's a good question!
A couple simple things: No messing with facilities and stuff yet, ours are good and we're not that wealthy, just "safe" as far as our finances now. Improve the coaching staff if possible. I didn't look at that much this year but when a couple guys left I found very affordable upgrades very easily. Pay more attention!
Other goals I have by the time I start my next season in the EPL:
1) Spend, and spend lots if I can find the right people, on making sure I have strong Central Defenders. Going into this season thinking that Alex Bruce and Troy Brown were adequate was my biggest problem in hindsight.
2) Stick with some kind of wide formation and build for it, doesn't have to be this 4-4-1-1 and in fact I think I might rather it not be in the end, but the super narrow formation I had going made it very hard to change and be flexible. This means getting a real ML (Jack Hughes can play there but he's much better suited for defense). Even though I shoehorned some guys to make the 4-4-1-1 fit I felt like our possession and spacing was a lot better, I felt a lot more like with a little better talent I could be competing instead of "well nothing is coming close to working at all, ever" in the old narrow formation.
3) I like Khan and Constantino but I think I need a legit target man. Khan is ok at best in the air. With my current starting lineup Constantino and Kang at AMC are both terrible, this seems very limiting. Especially when we have a guy like Neil Gordon, creative, great dribbling, great anticipation and brilliant on crosses and corners both. So I think after shoring up the defense building a true "striker partnership" with Constantino and a big guy should be a priority. That would be foreshadowing a change to a 4-4-2 or something down the road. I guess I'm not dead set on this but it seems like we need to find some way to be a bigger threat in the air in general, whatever that way may be.
-- I'm wondering if I can find the guys I want (DC, ML, Target Man #1 priorities) while I'm int he Championship next year or if I won't be able to get someone high quality until I'm back up at the top level and I should use mostly loaners to fill these holes next season. That'll be a decision to make once I see my budget next season and what types of players are willing to come play for me.
Is there anything key to managing at this level that I have never talked about or that it seems I may be oblivous to? Advice always welcome!