Manchester United - The Changing of the (Defensive) Guard

[Eaglesfan27]

Oct. 22, 2014 -

Preston North End (2nd in EC) upset Chelsea 4-2 in their 3rd round League Cup match! We play Chelsea next in an EPL match. Should be interesting to see which team plays better.


C.D. Leganes upset Real Madrid 3-1 in the 1st round of the Spanish Cup!

[Eaglesfan27]

Oct. 25, 2014 -

The English League Cup 4th round was drawn and we will be traveling to play the Wolves.



Today we play Chelsea in an EPL match that will decide who takes control of 1st place. We are on their pitch and Chelsea has a very talented team. Adriano is 32 and he is starting to age a bit, but he still has 11 goals in 12 starts but he has been taking more games off than in the past. Freddy Adu and Joe Cole generally start as a dynamic pair of attacking midfielders, but they are starting to work Julien Ribeiro into that rotation. Rafael van der Vaary, Arjen Robben, and Sanli Tuncay still form a good midfield. In a surprising move, they have recently acquired Jimmy Murphy, my former player, to be their left back. As expected, he has been struggling at left back and I'll be shocked if they actually start him there against us. Urby Emanuelson is a 28 year old Dutch centreback who is playing very well this year. Vincenzo Guidetti has also played centreback well. Jordi is a good tackler at right back. Petr Cech is still a world class keeper.

We are 6-4 favorites.

It's overcast with temperatures in the low 50's.


GK: Howard
DL: Schmidt
DC: Marchetti
DC: Salva
DR: Boogaart
ML: Barbosa
MC: Fletcher
MC: Djemba
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney
SC: Adriano

S1: Adriano, GK
S2: Ortega
S3: Godoy
S4: King
S5: Lucio

[Eaglesfan27]

4 minute mark: Rooney gets the ball in our own half and dribbles all over the pitch to get into the opposition box.. he dribbles into the right half of the box.. the keeper comes out.. he chips it.. wide left. What a goal that would have been.. amazing dribble.

12 minute mark: Salva stops an Adriano dribble into our box.

13 minute mark: Adu passes between two defenders into the box.. Adriano immediately blasts a shot.. upper left corner.. GOAL. Down 1-0.

18 minute mark: Howard with a long kick past midfield.. Adriano (mine) heads it along to Rooney.. he splits the two centrebacks with his dribble.. the keeper comes out to meet him.. he chips it over the keeper... it drops just under the crossbar! GOAL!!!! 1-1.

30 minute mark: Howard stops a long range shot from Adriano.

42 minute mark: Howard stops a flurry of shots from Adu and Adriano.




Halftime: 1-1 tie. Chelsea has over 42,000 fans here today.




50 minute mark: Barbosa passes to Rooney in the left side of the box.. Rooney fakes out the keeper.. shoots.. upper left corner.. wide left.

71 minute mark: Ortega on for Schreurs and King on for Adriano.

77 minute mark: Ortega passes it to King in the right side of the box... King shoots.. upper left corner.. past the keeper.. barely wide left.


Game over. 1-1 tie.

We were outshot 15-7 (9-3 on target)

Mark van den Boogaart wins MoM, 9 for form, 42 of 53 passes, 2 key passes, 2 of 3 tackles, 5 of 10 headers, 20 interceptions, 15 runs! 1 foul drawn.

[Eaglesfan27]

Post Match Info:

After that tie, we are tied with Chelsea for points but due to our better overall goal differential we are now in 1st place in the EPL

Our record is 8 wins, 4 draws, and 1 loss which is the same as Chelsea's.

[Eaglesfan27]

Oct 27, 2014 -

Boogaart was selected to the EPL Team of the Week.


Oct 28, 2014 -

Mickael Schmidt sustained a groin injury and will miss about 2 weeks.

Salva broke his collarbone today! He will miss 2-3 months


Boogaart sprained his ankle in practice today and will miss about a week

[Eaglesfan27]

Oct. 29, 2014 -

Today we play on the road against Paris in a Champions League Match. We really need to watch out for their strikers Coro and Oscar particularly with our defense banged up.


We are 4-5 favorites.

It's sunny with temperatures in the 40's.


GK: Howard
DL: Chivu
DC: Marchetti
DC: Cahais (he becomes critically important and will get the chance to really show if he can play or not)
DR: Brown
ML: Downing
MC: Parker
MC: Cook
MR: Schreurs
SC: McFadden
SC: King

S1: Adriano, GK
S2: Adriano
S3: Rooney
S4: Godoy
S5: Ortega
S6: Lucio
S7: Barbosa

[daedalus]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

Oct. 22, 2014 -

Preston North End (2nd in EC) upset Chelsea 4-2 in their 3rd round League Cup match! We play Chelsea next in an EPL match. Should be interesting to see which team plays better.


C.D. Leganes upset Real Madrid 3-1 in the 1st round of the Spanish Cup!

That's a good day. Two evil entities losing to small teams. Oh, yeah.

[Eaglesfan27]

1st minute: Chivu passes to DOwning who centers it for McFadden.. he shoots from 15 yards out.. upper right corner.. nice save by their keeper.

31 minute mark: Schreurs dribbles past his man.. crosses it to the middle of the box.. McFadden heads it.. into the crossbar.

36 minute mark: King passes to McFadden left of the box.. McFadden crosses it to the right side of the box.. Schreurs uses his chest to knock it down.. shoots.. over the bar.

44 minute mark: Brown gets a yellow card for a trip on Oscar.



Halftime: 0-0 tie. They have over 48,000 fans here today.



King is playing horribly. I put Adriano on for him. Downing is hurt, I put Barbosa on for him.



46 minute mark: McFadden centers it to Parker who is 10 yards out.. he shoots.. upper right corner.. the keeper partially blocks it.. into the goal post.. the keeper pounces on the rebound.

52 minute mark: Cook shoots from 20 yards out.. it hits the crossbar.

61 minute mark: Barbosa with a great pass into the middle of the box.. Adriano with a powerful half-volley... into the upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 1-0!

78 minute mark: Howard stops a flurry of shots from Oscar and Coro.

88 minute mark: Bertrand (their keeper) joins the attack for a corner (I've never noticed this before, but now it is happening frequently).. Howard punches it out to Adriano.. Adriano passes to Schreurs.. Schreurs shoots from midpitch.. online... GOAL!!!! 2-0.


Game over. 2-0 win for us.

We were outshot 18-10 (8-5 on target in our favor)

Barbosa wins MoM (off the bench), 10 for form, 11 of 13 passes, 2 key passes, 1 of 1 tackles, 2 of 4 headers, 1 interception, 14 runs, 1 foul drawn, and 1 assist.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by daedalus

That's a good day. Two evil entities losing to small teams. Oh, yeah.

I most certainly agree

[Eaglesfan27]

Post Match Info:

James McFadden strained his calf and will miss about 2 weeks

I decide to hire a few new physios and coaches to add to the staff.

[Eaglesfan27]

Nov. 1, 2014 -

The board are pleased with my performance as manager.


Mark van den Boogaart has won EPL Player of the Month! Wayne Rooney came in 2nd, and Andres D'Alessandro of Liverpool came in 3rd.


Sean Brady of Everton won EPL Young Player of the Month. Darren Bennett of Norwich City came in 2nd, and Phil Gardiner of Bolton came in 3rd.


Tottenham's Manuel Delgado Meco has won EPL Manager of the Month. Micky Adams of Newcastle came in 2nd, and I came in 3rd.


All of the coaches and physios have agreed to join us. I've added 2 physios and 3 coaches to my staff.

[Eaglesfan27]

Nov. 1, 2014 -

Today we host Newcastle in an EPL Match. We are in 1st while they are in 6th. Newcastle depends on Jermain Defoe to provide most of their offense and he has 10 goals in 13 starts. Dion Dickoff from the centreback position and KAsper Lorentzen from the midfield are providing great defense. Michel Testerink has become a good keeper and he has 5 clean sheets in 15 starts.

We are 4-5 favorites.

It's raining with temperatures in the 40's.


GK: Howard
DL: O'Shea
DC: Lucio
DC: Marchetti
DR: Grygera
ML: Barbosa
MC: Fletcher
MC: Djemba
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney
SC: Adriano

S1: Adriano, GK
s2: Alfonso
S3: Ortega
S4: King
S5: Cahais

[Eaglesfan27]

5 minute mark: Adriano gets a yellow card for tripping Dickoff.

11 minute mark: Barbosa with a corner kick.. to Adriano in the box.. the keeper pushed him.. penalty awarded! Grygera steps up.. shoots.. upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 1-0.

24 minute mark: Barbosa dribbles down the left sideline.. passes to Rooney outside the left side of the box.. he threads pass between two defenders to Adriano.. one dribble.. he shoots.. lower left corner.. GOAL!!!! 2-0.

26 minute mark: Barbosa gets a yellow card for holding Robson's jersey.

35 minute mark: Howard stops a pair of shots from Defoe and Hector.

36 minute mark: Barbosa dribbles past two defenders.. into the box.. passes it sharply to Fletcher who is 12 yards out.. he shoots.. upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 3-0!



Game over. 3-0 lead for us. We have over 91,000 fans here today.



57 minute mark: Barbosa dribbles past two defenders.. draws another defender over.. passes it to the near post.. Rooney heads it.. upper left corner.. GOAL!!!! 4-0.

60 minute mark: Alfonso on for Barbosa, Ortega on for Rooney, and King on for Adriano.

67 minute mark: Ortega with a corner kick.. to the near post.. King heads it.. into the upper left corner.. GOAL!!!! 5-0.

83 minute mark: Benjamin Bernard passes it to KAsper Lorentzen in the left edge of the box.. he shoots.. upper right corner.. Howard can't get to it.. GOAL. 5-1 game.


Game over. 5-1 win

We outshot them 18-9 (11-3 on target)

Rooney wins MoM, 10 for form, 14 of 17 passes, 1 key pass, 0 tackles, 4 of 6 headers, 1 interception, 11 runs, 2 fouls drawn, 1 assist, and 1 goal.


Barbosa also had a 10 for form. Schreurs had a 9 for form.

[Barkeep49]

Can you tell us about the coaches?

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Barkeep49

Can you tell us about the coaches?

Sure. I'll update that info this afternoon/evening.

[Eaglesfan27]

Nov 3, 2014 -

O'Shea and Rooney were selected to the EPL Team of the Week.

Nov 3, 2014 -

I ask Mr. Queiroz to give me a full report on my entire staff which has grown recently. Here is a summary of the highlights of his report:


"Peter Webb is a new coach that we just hired. He is not well known and I'm not sure how good he is going to do yet. However, he is 31 and he relates to players well. He is particularly good working with outfielders. As per your request, I've assigned him to work with the defenders as he used to be a defender himself in his early days. The guys seem to like him, but it will take time to see how they respond to him."

"Fabien Barthez is one of our keeper coaches, and he is great at his job. He works very well with youngsters and he is viewed well world wide. He is the rare star player who can teach as well as he played. He is rumored to be considered for several manager jobs and we might lose him at some point in the future."

"Tony Coton is another fairly longtime coach. He is also a keeper coahc and he is very good at what he does. He is viewed well by the players and he is good at teaching his craft."

"Kevin Poole is a new hire that is a virtual unknown. He is believed to be very good at working with young players and teaching good technique. As per your request, I've had him start working with our strikers to further their development."

"Arthur Albiston is a long time coach who is well respected throughout the world. He is an excellent teacher and is rumored to have been considered for several jobs in Scotland. He has a great eye for talent. He is working with our defenders and the guys love his personality."

"Dave Ryan is a long time coach who continues to thrive at teaching young players. He is probably our best at developing young talent. Dave is currently working with our midfielders and is viewed as a tough taskmaster, but guys respect him."

"John Cooke is a 54 year old longtime coach who has been working with our strikers for the last 7 years. Wayne Rooney considers him his favorite coach. It would be wise to keep this coach happy."

"Paul Thompson is a recent hire who is one of the best at teaching technique. This 35 year old New Zealand coach works well with midfielders."

"Ruud van Nistelrooy is working with our strikers but he has been a failure so far as a coach. I know he was one of your favorite players, but you may have to consider letting him go after this contract is up. He isn't a good teacher and his charges aren't getting better. Certainly don't let him work alone with any promising players. He can't seem to teach strikers nearly as well as he could play. You might want to consider having me re-assign him to a different group of players."


To summarize the physio comments, Mr. Queiroz thinks they are all top notch physios who are among the best in the business. Here is a summary of his comments:

- Jose Luis Runco is a 46 year old who has been with us several years and is working with our defenders.

- Neil Hough is a 46 year old who has been with us for several years and has been working with our keepers.

- Milton Graneolatti is a 57 year old Argentinian physio who we hired last year. He is working with our strikers to keep them limber.

- Garry Armer is 49 years old and is my longest standing physio. He has seniority and he gives me most of my reports. He is working primarily with midfielders.

- Kevin Kilbane is a 37 year old Irish Physio that we hired two years ago. He works with our keepers.

- Ivo Ulich is a 40 year old Physio who is very good at working with youngsters. He works primarily with our young midfielders.

- Christian Roberts is a 35 year old physio that we just hired from Wales. He is obscure, but he is good at working with tough injuries. I hired him specifically to help our defenders.

- Paul Underwood is a 41 year old physio who has been with the team for several years working with my strikers. He primarily keeps Rooney and Adriano healthy but gives a bit of attention to the rest of the guys as well.

(Note that I've taken plenty of artistic license with these reports.)

[Eaglesfan27]

Nov 4, 2014 -

Today we travel to play the Wolves for the League Cup 4th round match. The Wolves are 12th in the EPL and they have a few talented players. In particular, keeper Michele Sardo is playing quite well. Sardo is a 24 year old keeper who is showing good athleticism and good positioning. Darren Carter is playing well in the midfield and he is showing excellent positioning, tackling, and passing. Leandro is a 31 year old striker from Brazil who is starting to lose his speed, but he is still a good striker and he has 8 goals in 16 starts. Abubakari Yaukbu is a good defender who plays well in front of his keepers. Stuart Taylor has started some in goal for them as well. Taylor is 33 and is still very skilled.

We are 4-7 favorites.

It's overcast with temperatures in the 40's.


GK: Howard
DL: O'Shea
DC: Cahais
DC: Marchetti
DR: Grygera
ML: Downing
MC: Fletcher
MC: Cook
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney
SC: Adriano

S1: Adriano, GK
S2: Parker
S3: Barbosa
S4: King
S5: Brown

[Eaglesfan27]

1st minute: O'Shea tackles Juli hard outside the box.. I'm fortunate that didn't draw a flag. Howard stops the close direct kick with an easy save.

3 minute mark: Cook passes to Adriano in the box.. he shoots from 15 yards out.. upper left corner.. Taylor saves it.

11 minute mark: Noble passes to Faulkner in the box.. he shoots.. upper left corner.. Howard dives.. catches it!

18 minute mark: Downing takes the corner.. their keeper punches it out of the box.. Cahais gets it.. shoots from 25 yards out.. upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 1-0! The keeper was screened from seeing that shot.

29 minute mark: Downing passes it to Fletcher who flicks it on to Rooney just inside the left edge of the box... Rooney blasts a curving shot from 20 yards out.. curving.. the keeper dives.. it is out of his reach.. GOAL!!!! 2-0. That is Rooney's 15th goal of the year.

37 minute mark: The defenders stop Rooney's advance.. the ball rolls out of the box to Schreurs.. he passes it to Cook who is 25 yards out.. Cook shoots.. hard shot.. it deflects off Juli.. into the left side of the GOAL!!!! 3-0. Cook's 1st of the year.

44 minute mark: Paul Townsend elbows Rooney in the face hard! Rooney is down on the ground.. he looks hurt. The ref comes over.. he gives Townsend a red card! Rooney gets up and shakes it off.



Halftime: 3-0 lead. They have over 28,000 fans here today.



71 minute mark: Rooney tackles their defender hard. Yellow card for Rooney.

I pull Rooney for Barbosa and Adriano for King. Also, I put Parker on for Cook.



Game over. 3-0 win.

We outshot them 11-7 (5-4 on target in their favor)

Howard won MoM, 8 for form, 5 saves, 7 of 15 passes.

[Eaglesfan27]

Post Match Info:

Rooney has a bruised cheek and is expected to need a day or two to recover.

Tim Howard stubbed a finger and will need a day or two to recover.

Zdenek Grygera suffered a rib injury and will miss about a week.

[weinstein7]

[quote]"Ruud van Nistelrooy is working with our strikers but he has been a failure so far as a coach. I know he was one of your favorite players, but you may have to consider letting him go after this contract is up. He isn't a good teacher and his charges aren't getting better. Certainly don't let him work alone with any promising players.

That's kind of ominous. What is he, a child molester?

[Eaglesfan27]

Nov. 8, 2014 -

Nice draw for the Quarterfinal of the English League Cup as we will travel to play Preston which is in the English Championship and is in 5th place.


We will play them on Nov 26, 2014.

[Eaglesfan27]

[quote=weinstein7]

"Ruud van Nistelrooy is working with our strikers but he has been a failure so far as a coach. I know he was one of your favorite players, but you may have to consider letting him go after this contract is up. He isn't a good teacher and his charges aren't getting better. Certainly don't let him work alone with any promising players.

That's kind of ominous. What is he, a child molester?

Just an incompetent coach

[Eaglesfan27]

Nov 15, 2014 -

Today we travel to play Bolton in an EPL match. We are in 1st while they are in 5th. Bolton is led by a strong defense and a few scorers. In particular, Kevin Nolan is having a very good start to the season with 6 goals in 16 starts. Nolan isn't slowing down much at the age of 32. Striker Filipe Oliveira is 30 and is slowing down, but he has 7 goals and 5 assists in 14 starts. Igor de Camargo has 5 goals and 3 assists in just 7 starts at the striker position. Piotr Trochowski is providing solid 2 way play from the left wing position. Rhys Weston is leading the defense. Keeper Alexandre Negri is having the best season of his career so far. He has 7 clean sheets in 16 starts.

We are 4-7 favorites.

It's overcast with temperatures in the 40's.


GK: Howard
DL: Schmidt
DC: Lucio
DC: Marchetti
DR: Boogaart
ML: Barbosa
MC: Parker
MC: Fletcher
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney
SC: Adriano

S1: Adriano, GK
S2: Ortega
S3: Godoy
S4: King
S5: O'Shea

[Eaglesfan27]

8 minute mark: Fletcher dribbles up the pitch.. passes it to Parker just outside the box.. Parker shoots.. powerful curving shot.. upper right corner.. the keeper dives.. he can't reach it! GOAL!!!! 1-0.

10 minute mark: Emania with a corner kick.. to the near post.. Trochowski outleaps Boogaart.. he heads it.. into the upper left corner.. GOAL! 1-1 game.

19 minute mark: Howard starts a quick counterattack by running out of the box.. he passes to Barbosa at midpitch.. Barbosa with a perfect pass to the edge of the box.. Adriano outraces two defenders to the ball.. he dribbles to his right around the keeper.. shoots.. lower right corner.. GOAL!!!! 2-1.

36 minute mark: Their keeper stops a flurry of our shots.


Halftime: 2-1 lead for us. They have over 27,000 fans here today.



47 minute mark: Schreurs cross leads Rooney just a bit too much.

51 minute mark: Howard stops a flurry of shots by Oliveira and Trochowski.

59 minute mark: Barbosa with a corner kick to the near post.. Adriano heads it.. just over the ball.

60 minute mark: Ortega on for Schreurs.

66 minute mark: Barbosa passes to Rooney in the left side of the box.. he dribbles between two defenders.. passes it to Parker in the middle of the box.. he heads it.. the keeper blocks it.

70 minute mark: Ortega passes to Rooney in the box.. he shoots.. upper left corner.. the keeper with a great save.

Godoy on for Parker and King on for Adriano.

74 minute mark: Ortega passes to King in the middle of the box.. he shoots.. upper right corner.. past the keeper.. it hits the crossbar. They clear the rebound.

76 minute mark: Barbosa collided with Weston and he is hurt I've used all of my subs so I will have to play down a man.

I go to a 4-3-2 sliding Godoy out to the left wing.

81 minute mark: Ortega passes it to King in the right side of the box.. he shoots.. upper right corner.. good save by the keeper.

85 minute mark: Lucio with a great defensive play on Nolan in the box.

88 minute mark: Schmidt starts the counter attack.. long pass to Godoy on the left wing at midpitch.. Godoy with a very fast pass into the box.. King gets it.. turns.. shoots.. upper right corner.. blistering shot.. the keeper can't get to it! GOAL!!!! 3-1.


Game over. 3-1.

We outshot them 21-11 (13-6 on target)

Howard wins MoM, 9 for form, 5 saves, 12 of 21 passes.

[Eaglesfan27]

Post match info:

Helder Barbosa suffered a rotator cuff strain and will miss about a week.


Nov. 16, 2014 -

Millwall has sacked Kevin Keegan. Wigan manager Paul Scholes is being touted as the favorite to take over.


Nov. 17, 2014 -

Lucio was selected to the EPL Team of the Week.

[Eaglesfan27]

Nov. 18, 2014 -

Today we play Milan at home in a CL match. We are in 2nd place in the group with 9 points and a tie or win will guarantee advancement. Of course, a tie or win in our last match will also guarantee advancement. I considered resting my guys, but we want to send a message to Milan in front of our home fans. We will have to watch out for Cristiano Ronaldo in the midfield and Fabian Estoyanoff at striker. Andreas Isaksson is going to be difficult to score against.


We are 5-4 favorites.

It's sunny with temperatures in the 40's.


GK: Howard
DL: Schmidt
DC: Lucio
DC: Marchetti
DR: Boogaart
ML: Downing
MC: Fletcher
MC: Djemba
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney
SC: Adriano

S1: Adriano, GK
S2: Cahais
S3: Ortega
S4: Cook
S5: Brown
S6: McFadden
S7: Cook

[Eaglesfan27]

1st minute: Lucio was judged to have pushed Estoyanoff. Adriano argues the call.. I'm fortunate he gets away with a warning.

8 minute mark: Boogaart with a goal saving tackle on Estoyanoff.

23 minute mark: Estoyanoff goes down in front of Marchetti.. whistle.. Estoyanoff is judged to have dived.

37 minute mark: Downing crosses it to Schreurs in the right side of the box.. he shoots.. the keeper blocks it.. Rooney is racing the keeper to the rebound.. Rooney beats him to it.. taps it in! GOAL!!!!! 1-0.



Halftime: 1-0 lead. We have over 91,000 fans here today.



46 minute mark: Fletcher passes to Adriano at midpitch.. Adriano passes to Rooney.. Rooney is 30 yards out.. he unleashes a quick powerful banana shot.. it curves around two defenders.. the keeper dives.. he isn't there in time.. upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 2-0! Great strike from Rooney.

47 minute mark: Downing passes to Fletcher in the box.. Bonera trips Fletcher.. whistle.. penalty awarded! Downing steps up.. shoots.. to the keeper's left.. the keeper dives.. blocks it.. Bonera clears it.

70 minute mark: McFadden on for Downing and Ortega on for Schreurs.

71 minute mark: Schmidt passes it long to Rooney left of the box.. Rooney crosses it to Ortega on the right side of the box.. he takes two dribbles towards the right goal post.. slams a shot.. upper left corner.. the keeper can't cut down the angle.. GOAL!!!! 3-0.

75 minute mark: They start a counterattack.. long pass from Francesco Bilardo to Dimitry Berbatov.. he breaks into the box.. fakes out Lucio.. shoots.. upper right corner.. Howard can't stop it... GOAL. 3-1 game.


Game over. 3-1 win I just hope that Rooney and Adriano aren't ready to fall over dead by the middle of the season.

We each had 13 shots (we had 10 on target to their 6.)

Rooney wins MoM, 10 for form, 10 of 14 passes, 2 key passes, 0 tackles, 3 of 10 headers, 1 interception, 8 runs, 1 foul drawn, 1 assist, and 2 goals.

[Eaglesfan27]

Post Match Info:

That win guaranteed that we will advance to the 1st knockout round of the Champions League.

[Eaglesfan27]

Nov. 22, 2014 -

Today we host Coventry in an EPL Match. Coventry is currently 14th in the EPL. Tey have two star strikers and not much else other than a decent defense. Wayne Worthington is a very skilled striker but he has been held back the lack of talent around him. Actually, I'm tempted to liberate him from his surroundings. This 23 year old striker has 8 goals in 15 games despite defenses focusing on him. Shola Ameobi is 33, but he is the 2nd best striker on this team. He is losing some of his abilities, but the focus that Worthington has drawn has allowed Ameobi to score 5 goals in 13 starts. The defense is led by Martin Scott and midfielder Igor Collado. Marco Tedeschi is playing well in goal.


We are 4-7 favorites.

It's raining with temperatures in the high 30's.


GK: Howard
DL: O'Shea
DC: Lucio
DC: Marchetti
DR: Boogaart
ML: Downing
MC: Cook
MC: Parker
MR: Ortega
SC: McFadden
SC: King

S1: Adriano, GK
S2: Djemba
S3: Godoy
S4: Alfonso
S5: Chivu

[Eaglesfan27]

11 minute mark: Craig King collides with Scott on a corner kick.. King is hurt.. the ball bounces out to O'Shea.. O'Shea shoots from 25 yards out.. upper right corner.. the keeper dives.. it's past him! GOAL!!! 1-0! That is O'Shea's 1st of the year.

King has to be carried off the pitch. I put Godoy on for him.

21 minute mark: Parker and Worthington collide.. Worthington is hurt.. he has to be helped off the pitch. He is done for today.

43 minute mark: Their defenders and keeper stop a flurry of shots from within the box.


Halftime: 1-0 lead for us. We have over 70,000 fans here today.



51 minute mark: Richie Partridge passes back to their keeper.. he misplays it... it's an own goal! GOAL!!!! 2-0! Richie Partridge scores the fluke goal for us.

70 minute mark: Alfonso on for Downing who is tired.

81 minute mark: Howard stops a long range shot from Worthington.

90 minute mark: Boogaart with a long pass to the right corner of the pitch.. Ortega gets to it.. he centers to Godoy in the middle of the box.. Godoy shoots.. upper left corner.. GOAL!!!! 3-0. Godoy's 1st of the year.


Game over. 3-0 win for us.

We outshot them 14-1 (10-1 on target)

Ortega wins MoM, 9 for form, 20 of 27 passes, 0 of 3 tackles, 5 of 9 headers, 1 interception, 18 runs, 3 fouls drawn, and 1 assist.

Boogaart also had a 9 for form.

[Eaglesfan27]

Post Match Info:

Craig King injured his knee and will miss at least a week.


Boogaart and O'Shea were selected to the EPL Team of the Week.

[Eaglesfan27]

Nov. 26, 2014 -

Today we travel to play Preston the Quarter Final of the English League Cup. Preston is currently 7th in the English Championship and they are a significantly inferior team to our own. However, striker Ador is a dangerous player. This 29 year old from Spain has good skills and excellent speed. He has 12 goals in 17 starts and he could be dangerous if we don't pay close attention to him. Dhonatan is a 25 year old Brazilian striker who is a powerful leaper and target man. We need to keep him constantly covered as well. However, their defense is not that good. We outclass them in the midfield by a large margin. Paul Smith is a 22 year old Welsh keeper who we should be able to overwhelm.

We are 1-3 favorites.

It's sunny with temperatures in the 30's.


GK: Howard
DL: Schmidt
DC: Lucio
DC: Marchetti
DR: Boogaart
ML: Barbosa
MC: Fletcher
MC: Parker
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney
SC: Adriano

S1: Adriano, GK
S2: Djemba
S3: Stevanovic
S4: McFadden
S5: Ferdinand

[Eaglesfan27]

3 minute mark: Schreurs dribbles past three men.. crosses it to the far side of the box.. Rooney gets it.. spins past a defender.. shoots.. lower left corner.. the keeper dives.. it is past him! GOAL!!!! 1-0.

42 minute mark: Danny O'Donnell holds Barbosa's jersey and gets a yellow card.


Halftime: 1-0 lead for us. We played a lackluster first half in which we didn't press our clear advantage. I'm rather disappointed.

They have over 20,000 fans crammed into their stadium.



59 minute mark: Rooney gets the ball in the left side of the box after a very long pass from Adriano deep in our zone.. he shoots.. the keeper blocks it.. Rooney gets the rebound on the left edge of the box.. he takes two dribbles.. shoots the sharply angled shot.. upper right corner.. the keeper misplays it.. GOAL!!!! 2-0.

Stevanovic on for Fletcher and Ferdinand on for Lucio.

62 minute mark: Long pass from Boogaart to the right edge of the box.. Adriano gets to it.. tries to fake out the keeper.. shoots.. upper right corner.. the keeper blocks it.

63 minute mark: Ferdinand intercepts a keeper kick at midpitch.. heads it to the edge of the box to Rooney.. he dribbles between the two centrebacks.. into the box.. shoots.. lower left corner.. GOAL!!!! 3-0! That is Rooney's hattrick. It is also his 20th of the year.

70 minute mark: Adriano steals the ball from a defender just outside the box.. fights his way past another defender with a powerful dribble.. into the box.. shoots.. upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 4-0.

McFadden on for Rooney.


Game over. 4-0 win.

We outshot them 9-7 (6-1 on target)

Rooney wins MoM, 10 for form, 10 of 12 passes, 1 of 1 tackles, 2 of 6 headers, 2 interceptions, 7 runs, 1 foul drawn, and 3 goals.

[Eaglesfan27]

Nov. 28, 2014 -

Millwall have hired Paul Scholes away from Wigan.

The draw for the semi-final of the English League Cup has us playing either Cardiff or Tottenham depending upon who wins their rematch.

[Eaglesfan27]

Nov. 29, 2014 -

Today we travel to play Middlesbrough in an EPL Match. They are in 13th place currently. Their offense is practically non-existant, but their defense is rock solid. Milan Baros is the leading scorer with 4 goals in 16 starts at the striker position. Paul Adams and Leon Andreasen are playing excellent position defense at the centrebacks position. John Yates is a hard tackling right back. Manu (my former youth keeper) has developed some and he is their starting keeper. However, I don't think the 24 year old is that good from my videotape of him and I still think we made the right move. He has two clean sheets in 10 starts. I think we should be able to score fairly easily if we can get past the strong defensive line.

We are 4-7 favorites.

It's sunny with temperatures in the 40's.


GK: Adriano (he needs the occasional start to develop some more)
DL: Chivu
DC: Lucio
DC: Marchetti
DR: Brown
ML: Downing
MC: Wood
MC: Djemba
MR: Schreurs
SC: McFadden
SC: Adriano

S1: Howard
S2: Cahais
S3: Barbosa
S4: Alfonso
S5: Godoy

[Eaglesfan27]

7 minute mark: McFadden gets the ball at midpitch... fakes out one defender.. turns on the speed.. fakes out two more defenders.. dribbles into the box.. fakes out the keeper.. dribbles to his right.. shoots.. upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 1-0! Magical goal from McFadden. That was his 1st of the year!

16 minute mark: Marchetti steals the ball from their striker.. passes it the length of the pitch.. Schreurs outraces both defenders to the ball.. dribbles into the box.. dribbles to his left.. crossover dribble to his right.. shoots.. lower right corner.. GOAL!!!! 2-0.

42 minute mark: Baros gets a breakaway.. dribbles into the box.. shoots from 15 yards out.. upper left corner... Adriano dives.. catches it cleanly!


Halftime: 2-0 lead for us. They have over 35,000 fans here today.



61 minute mark: Alfonso on for Wood and Godoy on for Schreurs.

86 minute mark: McFadden collides between a defender and the goal post.. ouch. He looks hurt. I put Barbosa on for him.


Game over. 2-0 win for us.

We outshot them 17-7 (4-3 on target)

Adriano won MoM for his 3 saves and 9 of 15 passing. He had an 8 for form.

[daedalus]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

Adriano (he needs the occasional start to develop some more)

Y'know, I was just going to comment that it'd been awhile since he saw first team action.

[Eaglesfan27]

Post Match Info:

James McFadden broke his arm in that hard collision

He will be out for at least a month.


I recall Bob Wright from loan and plan on finally using him some with the first team.


Dec. 1, 2014 -

The board is very pleased with my performance as manager.

Leeds' Gregory Maury has won the EPL Player of the Month. Helder Barbosa came in 2nd, and Jose Antonio Reyes of Arsenal came in 3rd.

Antonio Ortega has won the EPL Young Player of the Month. Sean Brady of Everton came in 2nd, and David Garcia of Newcastle came in 3rd.

I won manager of the month for guiding the team to victory in all 4 league games. Steve Coppell of Fulham came in 2nd, and Bruce Arena of Aston Villa came in 3rd.

We have had a reasonably favorable draw for the third round of the English FA Cup. We will be traveling to play Millwall. Millwall are currently 17th in the English Championship.

The match will be played on January 3, 2015.

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 2, 2014 -

Darn! Mark van den Boogaart broke his jaw in training yesterday. He will miss about 3 weeks including a big match against Liverpool on Dec. 21.

Jamie Cook suffered a back strain in practice yesterday and he is expected to miss 2-3 weeks.

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 3, 2014 -

Today we travel to play Trabzonspor in what is essentially a meaningless CL Group match (except for the money.) I'm going to rest my biggest names and I would have started Bob Wright if he wasn't ineligible.

We are 4-7 favorites.

It's raining with temperatures in the 30's.


GK: Adriano (He deserves another start)
DL: Chivu (Schmidt needs the rest)
DC: Lucio
DC: Cahais (he deserves some starts and Marchetti needs rest)
DR: Brown (I need him to show he can still play with Boogaart's injury)
ML: Barbosa (Downing is more tired between them, and Alfonso is ineligible)
MC: Wood (I really need to get him more PT)
MC: Parker
MR: Ortega (He deserves more starts too)
SC: King
SC: Godoy (I would have started Wright if he was eligible. Rooney and Adriano deserve rest.)

S1: Howard
S2: Downing
S3: Fletcher
S4: Marchetti
S5: Stevanovic
S6: Djemba
S7: Adriano (injuries and ineligible players make me use him a sub.)

[Eaglesfan27]

11 minute mark: Barbosa dribbles past two defenders.. sharp curving cross to the center of the box.. Godoy heads it.. upper left corner.. GOAL!!!! 1-0.

16 minute mark: Parker's pass for King by the left post sails over his head.. just a little bit high.

21 minute mark: Barbosa passes to King in the box.. King shoots.. upper right corner.. the keeper partially blocks it.. a defender gets to it just before it crosses the line.

33 minute mark: Barbosa with a corner kick.. into the center of the box.. Godoy outjumps his man.. powerful header.. upper right corner.. the keeper can't get there in time.. GOAL!!!! 2-0.


Halftime: 2-0 lead for us. They have over 21,000 fans here today.



68 minute mark: Ortega dribbles past two defenders to the right corner of the pitch.. sharp cross.. near post.. Godoy heads it.. upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 3-0. That is Godoy's hattrick!

Stevanovic on for King who is tired, and Djemba on for Wood who is also tired.



Game over. 3-0 win.

We outshot them 11-4 (7-2 on target)

Godoy wins MoM, 10 for form, 15 of 19 passes, 2 key passes, 1 of 1 tackles, 10 of 15 headers, 1 interception, 1 run, 3 goals.

Barbosa also had a 10 for form.

Ortega had a 9 for form.

All of my other starters had an 8 for form.

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 5, 2014 -

This is a rough year for injuries!

Darren Fletcher suffered a strained neck in training today and will miss about a week.

Craig King suffered strained knee ligaments and will miss about a month!

[rexallllsc]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

OH MY!! Liverpool has offered Chelsea 115 (that is not a typo) Million dollars for Freddy Adu! They have also offered unspecified future incentives.

lol. I'm playing as Liverpool in my career, I got a $60 mil. transfer budget, so I decided to make a play for Cristiano Ronaldo (now @ Milan) who is valued @ $66 mil. Milan asked me for $130 mil. haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by rexallllsc

lol. I'm playing as Liverpool in my career, I got a $60 mil. transfer budget, so I decided to make a play for Cristiano Ronaldo (now @ Milan) who is valued @ $66 mil. Milan asked me for $130 mil. haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

I never did update that. Chelsea refused the 115 million dollars!

[rexallllsc]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

Nov. 16, 2014 -

Millwall has sacked Kevin Keegan. Wigan manager Paul Scholes is being touted as the favorite to take over.

lol. Keegan gets hired and fired more than any manager in my game. It's pretty nuts.

[illinifan999]

Yeah except he always goes back to the club that he either resigned from or was fired from about 2 weeks later. It's great to see "So and so fired Kevin Keegan." "So and So welcomes Kevin Keegan back"

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 6, 2014 -

Today we host Southampton in an EPL Match. Southampton has been hit hard by injuries and they are 19th in the EPL. Robbin Kieft, their star striker, is reportedly demanding to be traded and this team is on the verge of coming apart. Besides Kieft, we have to watch out for Jonathan Douglas in the midfield. Philippe Senderos is a good centreback. Iain Tuner is playing well in goal despite the lack of defensive or offensive support.


We are 4-7 favorites.

In the last 10 years, Manchester united has a record of 19 wins, 5 draws, and 0 losses against Southampton.

It's sunny with temperatures in the 40's.


GK: Howard
DL: Schmidt
DC: Lucio
DC: Marchetti
DR: Grygera
ML: Downing
MC: Wood
MC: Djemba
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney
SC: Adriano

S1: Adriano, GK
S2: Cahais
S3: Ortega
S4: Wright (time for him to get his first big time action)
S5: Godoy

[Eaglesfan27]

1st minute: Grygera (who I think has lost it) steals the pass.. passes it long down the right side of the pitch.. Schreurs catches up to it.. dribbles to the right corner.. centers for the middle of the box.. Rooney heads it.. upper left corner.. GOAL!!!! 1-0.

14 minute mark: Schmidt passes it long to Rooney.. great pass.. Rooney dribbles into the box.. the keeper comes out to challenge him.. Rooney floats a chip shot.. over the keeper.. just under the bar! GOAL!!!! 2-0.

16 minute mark: Tobrsensen passes to Grondin in the right portion of the box.. Grondin fakes out my centrebacks.. shoots from 10 yards out.. upper left corner.. Howard dives.. he can't reach it. GOAL. 2-1 match.

22 minute mark: Wood intercepts a pass from the keeper at midpitch.. passes it ahead to Rooney.. Rooney dribbles past a defender.. into the box.. unopposed.. shoots.. lower left corner.. GOAL!!!! 3-1. Rooney has his hattrick in under 25 minutes!

28 minute mark: Downing gets a yellow card for a trip on Kieft.

31 minute mark: Wood passes the ball between two defenders to Rooney in the left edge of the box.. Rooney shoots immediately.. strong banana shot.. upper right corner.. the keeper misplays it.. GOAL!!!! 4-1.

44 minute mark: Lucio steals the ball at midpitch.. passes it long to Rooney just outside the 6 yard box.. he shoots.. lower left corner.. GOAL!!!! 5-1. Rooney has 5 goals in the first half! Rooney has 25 on the year


Halftime: 5-1 lead We have over 68,000 fans here today. I always planned on pulling both of my strikers at the half, and I'm sticking to that plan.


Wright on for Rooney and Godoy on for Adriano.

The crowd gives Rooney a standing ovation as the substitution is announced.


57 minute mark: Grygera passes to Wright outside the box.. he heads it to the middle of the box.. Godoy gets to it.. shoots.. lower left corner.. GOAL!!!! 6-1.

66 minute mark: Schreurs dribbles down the right sideline.. crosses it to far post.. Wright heads it.. good save by the keeper.

75 minute mark: Cahais on for Schmidt.


Game over. 6-1 win.

We outshot them 17-6 (13-2 on target)

Rooney wins MoM (in 45 short minutes), 10 for form, 5 of 5 passes, 0 tackles, 3 of 6 headers, 2 runs, 5 goals (on 5 shots.)

Wood also had a 10 for form.

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 8, 2014 -

Grygera, Lucio, and Wood were all selected to the EPL Team of the Week.


Dec. 11, 2014 -

Not the best of draws, but not the worst of draws. We will play Werder Bremen in the 1st knockout round of the Champions League.



Dec. 12, 2014 -

England has been drawn in Group A of the Confederations Cup. We will be in that group along with Australia, Uruguay, and Holland. Matches will be begin June 24, 2015.

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 13, 2014 -

Today we travel to play the Wolves in an EPL Match. The Wolves are in 16th while we are in 1st. The Wolves top three scorers are all injured. As a result, they shouldn't be much of a challenge for us. Michele Sardo is a decent keeper. Abubakari Yakubu is a good centreback. Bruno Moreira is the healthiest of the strikers.

We are 4-7 favorites.


It's raining with temperatures in the 40's.


GK: Adriano (Time to work him more and more into my playing rotation)
DL: Chivu
DC: Ferdinand (probably his last start barring injures. Salva is still hurt and Lucio is tired, but Ferdinand is losing it quick.)
DC: Marchetti
DR: Brown
ML: Barbosa
MC: Parker
MC: Djemba
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney (I'm hoping to get a big lead again. If so, I will rest both strikers after the 1st half.)
SC: Adriano

S1: Howard
S2: Ortega
S3: Godoy
S4: Wright (Bob deserves another more PT after a solid reserve debut.)
S5: Cahais