Front Office Football Central - View Single Post - FM – From Semi-Pro Minnows to Champions League Glory: Dover Athletic FC

NoSkillz · 04-22-2014, 11:20 PM

Sun. February 26, 2023

League Cup - FINALS
Arsenal (3rd in Premier League) vs. Dover (4th in Premier League)
Wembley Stadium, London, England

Betting Odds: Arsenal: 4-6 (Favourites) Draw: N/A Dover: 7-2
Past Meetings: 3W 2D 8L

Arsenal are big favourites today and have beaten us three straight times after our ridiculous 6-0 win at home over them last year. They've only lost one of their last 15 matches across all competitions so they are in fine form. Midfielder Jack Wilshere is their leading scorer with 13 goals and striker/defender Nchimunya Munyao has 10 goals in 37 games. They are completely healthy for today's contest. They aren't a high scoring team and play close to the vest.

We go with the exact same lineup as the Benfica game with one exception: Paul Moses will start today. He deserves it - plus, I have a midweek game against Manchester United that Moses isn't eligible for so I'll use him today. Counter mentality to start.

Dover: 4-4-2 Counter
GK - I. Wilke
D - R. Gaucho, C. Contreras, S. Loucif, K. Zagos
M - A. Bamba, N. Cairney, G. Fanfoni, G. Bolis
S - P. Moses, Chiquinho
Bench - D. Traore, S. Spall, E. Harvey, H. Cruz, G. Allan, Z. Bardi, S. Andrea

Very interesting. Arsenal are in a 4-5-1 formation with a DMC and they seem to be starting a squad filled with a bunch of second teamers. Boakye is alone up front - no Wilshere…no Munyao either and neither are even on the bench! Renan is in goal…wild. They still have a lot of talent so I won't be complacent but this is a winnable game. Lets do it for the fans!

4' - Moses gets the ball at midfield and he's GONE! Arsenal defenders catch up to him as he reaches the penalty area and he's forced to round the keeper to his weaker left side and ends up shooting into the side netting. Great chance.

13' - Off a failed corner, we move the ball back in to a retreating Renato Gaucho and his shot is saved by Renan.

17' - Arsenal have an extended period of possession and are playing keep away. Aaron Ramsey moves it up to Boakye and he turns to his right side on Contreras and lets a rocket off that is in the top corner. Great shot, great buildup and we're down. ARSENAL GOAL 0-1

36' - Off a throw in, we move it to Chiquinho and he lets loose with a blast but it's saved very well by Renan.

39' - Paul Moses is given a yellow card.

42' - We win a corner and Cairney's kick is headed toward goal by Contreras and on the way, it deflects off Paul Moses and it's IN!!! Yes! DOVER GOAL 1-1

HALFTIME - Sitting back, we hold only 49% of possession and they outshoot us 8-7 (1-3 on target). We're better than these guys - at least with this lineup that they've put out. I am changing to a control mentality and will try to play a more aggressive style in the second half. Lets bring home this trophy for our supporters!

51' - Moses with a BULLET from just outside the area but Renan is in good position and bumps it to safety.

59' - Cairney with a free kick from way out and his curling shot is destined for the left corner but it's saved "with style" by Renan. So close!!

60' - Boakye with a low hard blast and Wilke makes the great stop!

63' - My assistant claims that Chiquinho and Kostas Zagos are playing "nervously" and it's in evidence when Paul Moses feeds a beauty pass into the area and Chiquinho essentially whiffs on it. Come on Chiquinho!

64' - Gian Marco Fanfoni with a yellow card.

65' - Arsene Bamba is banged up a bit so in comes Helder Cruz.

66' - Wilke with a HUGE save off a Ramsey blast!

72' - We have possession in the middle of the field and move the ball around nicely. Gianluca Bolis sends it back to Fanfoni and he touches the ball over to Neil Cairney. From about ten yards outside the area, Cairney unleashes a vicious shot and it goes into the top left hand corner of the net past a sprawling Renan and we have A LEAD! What a shot! DOVER GOAL 2-1

75' - Neil Cairney with a yellow now, our third of the game. Time to dial down the aggression a bit.

78' - We have another corner and Cairney's cross is to the near post. Chiquinho heads it and it's over to the far post and headed again by Claudio Contreras and it's IN THE NET!! Holy crap!!! We have a two goal lead! DOVER GOAL 3-1

Arsenal move to a 4-2-4 formation. We move to a counter attacking mentality.

83' - Zoltan Bardi is in for Paul Moses.

90' - Shaun Spall is in and Gian Marco Fanfoni is out. Three minutes of extra time. Hold them off!!!

90'+2 - Chiquinho with a yellow card.

That's it! DOVER WIN THE LEAGUE CUP!!!!!!!!!

Arsenal 1 - 3 Dover
Goals - Paul Moses (7.5), Neil Cairney (8.5), Claudio Contreras (8.8)
Assists - Claudio Contreras, Gian Marco Fanfoni (7.8), Neil Cairney
Man of the Match - Claudio Contreras
Other Dover Notables - Renato Gaucho (7.0)
Attendance - 90,000

We only held 45% of possession but ended up outshooting them 16-13 (7-3 on target), as we dialled up the aggression in the second half. SENSATIONAL! Contreras was a beast today.

-- We won three FA Trophies back in our non-league days but this qualifies as our first major cup victory. Just a sensational moment for the club and the supporters are singing my name in the streets!

The board also state that they want to "ensure the manager is able to fully concentrate on preparing the club for future challenges". Sounds good to me!

-- We are given £103,000 for the victory. Who cares…just pass me the damn trophy! We pay out a squad bonus of £145,000 for the win.

-- With this win, we are guaranteed a spot in next year's Europa League. Obviously, we have bigger goals than the Europa!

Premier League Update

--Reading SHOCK Manchester City 2-0 in news very welcomed by us here at Dover! Lets take a look at the current table.

BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS
(ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 29 GAMES UNLESS NOTED)

1. Chelsea - 68 points
2. Manchester City - 61 points
3. Arsenal - 61 points (28 games)
4. Dover - 60 points (28 games)
----------------------------------------------------
5. Manchester United - 60 points (28 games)
6. Sheffield Wednesday - 55 points
7. Reading - 44 points
----------------------------------------------------

Injury Update

-- Andrea Rocca returns to full training! He'll likely need some time to regain match fitness but it's great having him back. That said, Gian Marco Fanfoni has been a revelation in his place and deserves some playing time going forward.

Dover U18 Update

-- The kids win 5-2 over MK Dons U18s. Striker Tomas Liska scores a hat trick in the game and new midfielder Felix Hernandez scores a pair.

March Update

-- We have a ridiculously difficult schedule ahead of us, especially considering the quality of our opposition. We only have three Premier League games but look at our opponents: Manchester United (away), Liverpool (home) and Arsenal (away). We have an FA Cup Quarterfinals matchup at home versus Premier League leading Chelsea and we have the second leg of our Champions League First Knockout Round matchup at home versus Benfica. So only five games, which isn't bad but they are all toughies.

-- I get positive training notices for Gianluca Bolis, Graham Allan and U18 players Damian Thorne, Sean Woolley and Geoff Williams. Negative reports come in for Andrea Rocca and Wayne Rooney. I'll give Rocca a pass since he was injured for two months straight and just returned to full training.

Premier League Monthly Awards

-- Man City's Yahia Traore wins Player of the Month honours after scoring four goals in three games.

-- Burnley winger Jozef Durica wins Young Player of the Month. Our own Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz finishes third! Great honour for Yilmaz!

-- Paul Moses continues to add to his resume, notching the Premier League Goal of the Month for his beauty against Reading on February 4th.

-- Reading manager Bernd Schuster wins Manager of the Month honours and they had a win against us in February among their 3-0-0 record.

March Board Confidence Update

-- The board are very pleased with my overall leadership. Our League Cup win is the highlight and they are still disappointed with young Lyubomir Kunchev. Poor kid - he's been great so far for the U18s.

-- We lost £535,000 last month.

Next Up

-- We head to Old Trafford to face Manchester United in a key Premier League matchup.

04-22-2014, 11:20 PM	#342
NoSkillz College Benchwarmer Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: St. Catharines, Canada	Sun. February 26, 2023 League Cup - FINALS Arsenal (3rd in Premier League) vs. Dover (4th in Premier League) Wembley Stadium, London, England Betting Odds: Arsenal: 4-6 (Favourites) Draw: N/A Dover: 7-2 Past Meetings: 3W 2D 8L Arsenal are big favourites today and have beaten us three straight times after our ridiculous 6-0 win at home over them last year. They've only lost one of their last 15 matches across all competitions so they are in fine form. Midfielder Jack Wilshere is their leading scorer with 13 goals and striker/defender Nchimunya Munyao has 10 goals in 37 games. They are completely healthy for today's contest. They aren't a high scoring team and play close to the vest. We go with the exact same lineup as the Benfica game with one exception: Paul Moses will start today. He deserves it - plus, I have a midweek game against Manchester United that Moses isn't eligible for so I'll use him today. Counter mentality to start. Dover: 4-4-2 Counter GK - I. Wilke D - R. Gaucho, C. Contreras, S. Loucif, K. Zagos M - A. Bamba, N. Cairney, G. Fanfoni, G. Bolis S - P. Moses, Chiquinho Bench - D. Traore, S. Spall, E. Harvey, H. Cruz, G. Allan, Z. Bardi, S. Andrea Very interesting. Arsenal are in a 4-5-1 formation with a DMC and they seem to be starting a squad filled with a bunch of second teamers. Boakye is alone up front - no Wilshere…no Munyao either and neither are even on the bench! Renan is in goal…wild. They still have a lot of talent so I won't be complacent but this is a winnable game. Lets do it for the fans! 4' - Moses gets the ball at midfield and he's GONE! Arsenal defenders catch up to him as he reaches the penalty area and he's forced to round the keeper to his weaker left side and ends up shooting into the side netting. Great chance. 13' - Off a failed corner, we move the ball back in to a retreating Renato Gaucho and his shot is saved by Renan. 17' - Arsenal have an extended period of possession and are playing keep away. Aaron Ramsey moves it up to Boakye and he turns to his right side on Contreras and lets a rocket off that is in the top corner. Great shot, great buildup and we're down. ARSENAL GOAL 0-1 36' - Off a throw in, we move it to Chiquinho and he lets loose with a blast but it's saved very well by Renan. 39' - Paul Moses is given a yellow card. 42' - We win a corner and Cairney's kick is headed toward goal by Contreras and on the way, it deflects off Paul Moses and it's IN!!! Yes! DOVER GOAL 1-1 HALFTIME - Sitting back, we hold only 49% of possession and they outshoot us 8-7 (1-3 on target). We're better than these guys - at least with this lineup that they've put out. I am changing to a control mentality and will try to play a more aggressive style in the second half. Lets bring home this trophy for our supporters! 51' - Moses with a BULLET from just outside the area but Renan is in good position and bumps it to safety. 59' - Cairney with a free kick from way out and his curling shot is destined for the left corner but it's saved "with style" by Renan. So close!! 60' - Boakye with a low hard blast and Wilke makes the great stop! 63' - My assistant claims that Chiquinho and Kostas Zagos are playing "nervously" and it's in evidence when Paul Moses feeds a beauty pass into the area and Chiquinho essentially whiffs on it. Come on Chiquinho! 64' - Gian Marco Fanfoni with a yellow card. 65' - Arsene Bamba is banged up a bit so in comes Helder Cruz. 66' - Wilke with a HUGE save off a Ramsey blast! 72' - We have possession in the middle of the field and move the ball around nicely. Gianluca Bolis sends it back to Fanfoni and he touches the ball over to Neil Cairney. From about ten yards outside the area, Cairney unleashes a vicious shot and it goes into the top left hand corner of the net past a sprawling Renan and we have A LEAD! What a shot! DOVER GOAL 2-1 75' - Neil Cairney with a yellow now, our third of the game. Time to dial down the aggression a bit. 78' - We have another corner and Cairney's cross is to the near post. Chiquinho heads it and it's over to the far post and headed again by Claudio Contreras and it's IN THE NET!! Holy crap!!! We have a two goal lead! DOVER GOAL 3-1 Arsenal move to a 4-2-4 formation. We move to a counter attacking mentality. 83' - Zoltan Bardi is in for Paul Moses. 90' - Shaun Spall is in and Gian Marco Fanfoni is out. Three minutes of extra time. Hold them off!!! 90'+2 - Chiquinho with a yellow card. That's it! DOVER WIN THE LEAGUE CUP!!!!!!!!! Arsenal 1 - 3 Dover Goals - Paul Moses (7.5), Neil Cairney (8.5), Claudio Contreras (8.8) Assists - Claudio Contreras, Gian Marco Fanfoni (7.8), Neil Cairney Man of the Match - Claudio Contreras Other Dover Notables - Renato Gaucho (7.0) Attendance - 90,000 We only held 45% of possession but ended up outshooting them 16-13 (7-3 on target), as we dialled up the aggression in the second half. SENSATIONAL! Contreras was a beast today. -- We won three FA Trophies back in our non-league days but this qualifies as our first major cup victory. Just a sensational moment for the club and the supporters are singing my name in the streets! The board also state that they want to "ensure the manager is able to fully concentrate on preparing the club for future challenges". Sounds good to me! -- We are given £103,000 for the victory. Who cares…just pass me the damn trophy! We pay out a squad bonus of £145,000 for the win. -- With this win, we are guaranteed a spot in next year's Europa League. Obviously, we have bigger goals than the Europa! Premier League Update --Reading SHOCK Manchester City 2-0 in news very welcomed by us here at Dover! Lets take a look at the current table. BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE - STANDINGS (ALL TEAMS HAVE PLAYED 29 GAMES UNLESS NOTED) 1. Chelsea - 68 points 2. Manchester City - 61 points 3. Arsenal - 61 points (28 games) 4. Dover - 60 points (28 games) ---------------------------------------------------- 5. Manchester United - 60 points (28 games) 6. Sheffield Wednesday - 55 points 7. Reading - 44 points ---------------------------------------------------- Injury Update -- Andrea Rocca returns to full training! He'll likely need some time to regain match fitness but it's great having him back. That said, Gian Marco Fanfoni has been a revelation in his place and deserves some playing time going forward. Dover U18 Update -- The kids win 5-2 over MK Dons U18s. Striker Tomas Liska scores a hat trick in the game and new midfielder Felix Hernandez scores a pair. March Update -- We have a ridiculously difficult schedule ahead of us, especially considering the quality of our opposition. We only have three Premier League games but look at our opponents: Manchester United (away), Liverpool (home) and Arsenal (away). We have an FA Cup Quarterfinals matchup at home versus Premier League leading Chelsea and we have the second leg of our Champions League First Knockout Round matchup at home versus Benfica. So only five games, which isn't bad but they are all toughies. -- I get positive training notices for Gianluca Bolis, Graham Allan and U18 players Damian Thorne, Sean Woolley and Geoff Williams. Negative reports come in for Andrea Rocca and Wayne Rooney. I'll give Rocca a pass since he was injured for two months straight and just returned to full training. Premier League Monthly Awards -- Man City's Yahia Traore wins Player of the Month honours after scoring four goals in three games. -- Burnley winger Jozef Durica wins Young Player of the Month. Our own Mohamed Lamine Yilmaz finishes third! Great honour for Yilmaz! -- Paul Moses continues to add to his resume, notching the Premier League Goal of the Month for his beauty against Reading on February 4th. -- Reading manager Bernd Schuster wins Manager of the Month honours and they had a win against us in February among their 3-0-0 record. March Board Confidence Update -- The board are very pleased with my overall leadership. Our League Cup win is the highlight and they are still disappointed with young Lyubomir Kunchev. Poor kid - he's been great so far for the U18s. -- We lost £535,000 last month. Next Up -- We head to Old Trafford to face Manchester United in a key Premier League matchup. __________________ MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 04-24-2014 at 10:22 AM.