My 10th season as a Football Manager (4th at Manchester United)

[Eaglesfan27]

Post Match Report:

Adriano damaged his foot and will miss about a week.

Our attendance of 91,290 was a new record for an EPL Match for us

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 17, 2013 -

Downing was selected to the EPL Team of the Week.

Luis Rafael of Birmingham has torn knee ligaments and will miss at least 8 months.


Gary Megson has taken over at Newcastle as their new manager.

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 18, 2013 -

Today we play San Lorenzo in the Club World Championship Final. San Lorenzo de Almagro is a talented team from Beunos Aires, Argentina. They have a pair of very talented strikers, however, their best striker Lisandro Lopez is out injured for this game. Their second best Striker, Damian Luna is a highly creative player with great flair. However, he lacks great finishing skill. Despite this, he has 9 goals on the year. The defense is strong led by fast powerful centrebacks Daniel Diaz and Jorge Mendoza. Carlos Chavez and Jonathan Santana are both good midfielders.


We are 4-6 favorites.

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


GK: Howard
DL: Schmidt
DC: Marchetti
DC: Salva
DR: Brown
ML: Downing
MC: Parker
MC: Cook
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney
SC: King

S1: Taylor
S2: Lucio
S3: McFadden
S4: Godoy
S5: Ortega
S6: Alfonso
S7: Smith

[Eaglesfan27]

3 minute mark: Howard stops a long range shot from Moreno.

9 minute mark Schreurs with a cross from the right corner.. the keeper punches it away from King.. right to Marchetti.. he shoots from 20 yards out.. powerful kick.. GOAL!!!! 1-0.

23 minute mark: Rooney falls to the ground grasping his leg! He has to come off.. I put McFadden on for him.

27 minute mark: Salva gets a yellow card for tripping Luna.

38 minute mark: Salva gets a 2nd yellow card for pushing Luna! He is ejected!

I put Lucio in for King and switch to a 4-4-1.

43 minute mark: Downing with a corner kick.. to Schreurs who heads it at the goal.. the keeper blocks it.. Schreurs gets the rebound.. shoots.. upper left corner.. GOAL!!!! 2-0.

44 minute mark: Cook gets a yellow card for pushing Mendoza.


Halftime: 2-0 lead.

53 minute mark: Carlos Chavez with a corner kick.. Daniel Diaz in the middle of the box.. outjumps Lucio.. heads it.. into the upper right corner... GOAL. Up 2-1.

56 minute mark: Jeroen Schreurs dribbles down the right sideline.. past a defender.. draws another defender over.. crosses it to the far post.. McFadden heads it.. into the upper left corner.. GOAL!!!! 3-1.

61 minute mark: Ojeda passes to Chavez.. he shoots from 25 yards out.. Howard is slow to react.. I think he is thinking it is going to sail wide.. it hits the right post.. and bounces in! GOAL. 3-2 lead.

70 minute mark: Godoy on for Cook who has a yellow card and is tired.

72 minute mark: The keeper trips McFadden in the box.. whistle.. penalty! Lucio steps up.. shoots.. right over the keeper's left shoulder.. GOAL!!!! 4-2.

82 minute mark: Parker passes to McFadden just left of the box.. McFadden passes between two defenders back to Parker.. Parker shoots.. upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 5-2.

93 minute mark: Parker plays a perfect through ball into the box.. McFadden gets to it.. left side of the box.. shoots.. upper right corner.. GOAL!!!!! 6-2.


Game over. 6-2 win in the Club World Championship

We outshot them 13-10 (11-5 on target)

James McFadden won MoM, 10 for form, 11 of 14 passes, 0 tackles, 5 of 10 headers, 2 interceptions, 7 runs, 2 fouls drawn, 2 assists, and 2 goals.

Schreurs and Downing both had 10's for form as well.

[Eaglesfan27]

Post Match Info:

We've been awarded 9 million dollars for winning the Club World Championship!!!!!

Wayne Rooney damaged his calf muscle and will miss about a week.

My physios tell me I need to stop relying on Mickael Schmidt so much and that the kid needs rest.



Arsenal suffered a big blow as Jose Antonio Reyes suffered a serious hip injury and is expected to miss at least 3 months.

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 21, 2013 -

The World Cup Groups have been drawn. We will be in Group H along iwth South Korea, Ireland, and Uruguay. Overall, I'm quite happy with our grouping.


Today we travel to play Charlton in an EPL Match. They are in 13th while we are in 1st. Charlton is hit hard by injuries right now, and four of their best players are hurt. They will be relying heavily on midfielder Mohamed Sissoko and centrebacks Andy Gibson and Aaron Hughes. Striker Ross McCormack will have to step up to get the offense going. Peter Enckelman is a decent keeper at this stage in his career.



We are 1-3 favorites.

It's windy with temperatures in the mid 50's.


GK: Howard
DL: Cahais (I need someone else able to play left back and I think Cahais should have the skill set.)
DC: Salva
DC: Marchetti
DR: Grygera
ML: Alfonso
MC: Parker
MC: Cook
MR: Ortega
SC: McFadden
SC: King

S1: Taylor
S2: O'Shea (he will become our regular spell left back if Cahais can't do it)
S3: Godoy
S4: Smith
S5: Wood

[Eaglesfan27]

4 minute mark: Alfonso dribbles down the left sideline.. past a defender.. crosses it to the far post.. Ortega with the header.. over the bar.

28 minute mark: Parker passes to Alfonso on the left corner.. he centers it short for McFadden.. he shoots.. the keeper punches it over the bar.

33 minute mark: Cahais passes to Parker at midfield.. he plays a nice through pass.. King gets it.. whistle.. offside on King.

34 minute mark: Ortega gets a yellow card for a trip on McCormack.. yellow card.. Ortega argues the call.. second yellow card!! Darn it. I put Godoy on for King who is already showing signs of being tired, and go with a 4-4-1.



Halftime: 0-0 tie. They have over 27,000 fans here today.



47 minute mark: Godoy with a corner kick... to the middle of the box.. Parker heads it.. into the upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 1-0.


51 minute mark: Godoy passes to McFadden in the middle of the pitch... McFadden shoots from 30 yards out.. it hits a defender.. and sails over the keeper's head... into the goal!!! GOAL!!!!! 2-0. Nice strike from 30 plus yards out.

60 minute mark: Smith on for McFadden and Wood on for Parker.

62 minute mark: Smith gets a yellow card for diving.

74 minute mark: Alfonso passes to Smith in the box.. Smith fakes out a defender.. shoots.. upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 3-0.

87 minute mark: Howard gets called for pushing McCormack.. whistle.. penalty awarded.. McCormack steps up.. shoots... upper left corner... GOAL. Still up 3-1.


Game over. 3-1 win.

We each had 10 shots on goal, we had 5 shots on target, they had 4.

Alfonso won MoM, 9 for form, 24 of 32 passes, 1 of 2 tackles, 4 of 6 headers, 2 interceptions, 11 runs, 1 foul drawn, and 1 assist.

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 23, 2013 -

Juventus has hired Fabrizio Castori to be their new manager.


Grygera was selected to the EPL Team of the Week.

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 24, 2013 -

Jamie Cook strained his wrist in practice today and will certainly miss our big game against Liverpool in 2 days. Even worse, Rooney is taking longer than expected to recover from his injury and he will miss the Liverpool match as well.


Coventry are reportedly interested in acquiring Alfonso. I've told them to keep their hands off as he is not for sale at any price.

[daedalus]

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

Then again, my scouts view Jesus and Chris Taylor as comparable players

Yeah, but "Adriano following the teaching of Chris Taylor" is nowhere NEAR as cool. Nor is "Chris Taylor saves!".

Originally Posted by Eaglesfan27

Paul Robinson who is a veteran highly skilled keeper.

Sure, sure. Just rub it in.

F'ing reflex tests.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by daedalus

Yeah, but "Adriano following the teaching of Chris Taylor" is nowhere NEAR as cool. Nor is "Chris Taylor saves!". Sure, sure. Just rub it in.

F'ing reflex tests.

[nfg22]

Just to let ya know I follow along still and enjoy it greatly...I just dont reply cause most of the time I am at work and if I log in they will notice the cookie most liekly...

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by nfg22

Just to let ya know I follow along still and enjoy it greatly...I just dont reply cause most of the time I am at work and if I log in they will notice the cookie most liekly...

Thank you and thanks to everyone else who is reading along. I'm enjoying writing it, and I'm glad people are enjoying reading it

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 26, 2013 -

Arsenal has sold striker Vincenzo Di Giacomo to Mallorca for 32 million dollars.


Michael Wood suffered a back strain yesterday in practice and will miss 3-4 weeks.



Today we host Liverpool in an EPL match, but we are playing without a few of our best players. We are currently in 1st place. Liverpool is in 3rd place and they are 6 points behind us, but they have played one more game. Liverpool also has a key injury. Cisse is out injured this game. However, they have a very talented team. Left winger Hatem Ben Arfa is having a career year. Andres D'Alessandro is 32, but he shows no signs of slowing down and is still a top flight midfielder. Steven Gerrard is still playing well in the midfield. Aldo Andres Jara is a new striker who is doing well and is the 2nd leading scorer (behind Cisse) with 12 goals. Liam Ridgewell and Hedwiges Maduro are both strong skilled centrebacks. Chris Kirkland continues to play well in goal at the age of 32.


We are 5-4 favorites.

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


GK: Howard
DL: Schmidt
DC: Lucio
DC: Salva
DR: Grygera
ML: Downing
MC: Fletcher
MC: Djemba
MR: Schreurs
SC: McFadden
SC: King

S1: Taylor
S2: Godoy
S3: Alfonso
S4: Rooney (he is doubtful, but I might use him.)
S5: Marchetti

[finkenst]

i've got to not not login to fofc for 5 days at a time..

yours and fm's dynasties almost killed all my computer time.

i'm looking forward to getting back into my chelsea game and see if I can get the quad.

Adriano is a Left Back and is probably the same guy as the one in yours...

also, there are a heck of a lot of adriano's.. try searching for that name..

[Eaglesfan27]

2 minute mark: Schreurs passes it to Fletcher who is 25 yards away... he blasts a banana shot... upper right corner... Kirkland with a good save.

32 minute mark: Fletcher passes to McFadden in the box.. he shoots.. lower left corner... excellent save by Kirkland.

35 minute mark: Gerrard trips Fletcher... yellow card for Gerrard.

36 minute mark: Downing with a corner kick... to the middle of the box.. Lucio heads it.. into the upper left corner... GOAL!!!! 1-0! Lucio with a huge goal!

40 minute mark: Reo-Coker trips Schreurs... yellow card for Reo-Coker.



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


61 minute mark: Godoy on for King.

76 minute mark: Schmidt with a key defensive play.

77 minute mark: Schmidt gets a yellow card for pulling Yakubu's jersey.

78 minute mark: Djemba gets called for pulling D'Alessandro's jersey in the box.. whistle.. penalty.. D'Alessandro steps up.. shoots.. to Howard's left.. he dives right... goal. 1-1.

79 minute mark: Alfonso on for Fletcher who is exhausted and Marchetti on for Schmidt who is tired. Also, perhaps foolishly, I'm not playing for the tie... I tell the offense to open it up in the last 10 minutes.

82 minute mark: Schreurs with a long pass to Godoy.. he passes to McFadden in the box.. hard shot... lower right corner.. the keeper dives.. pushes it wide.

90 minute mark: We have a flurry of shots on goal... their defense and keeper block them all.

91 minute mark: Alfonso with a long pass to Downing.. Downing with a long cross to Schreurs.. he has a diving header.. upper right corner... the keeper saves it.


Game over. 1-1 tie.

We outshot them 10-4 (7-3 on target)

Downing wins MoM, 10 for form, 8 of 9 passes, 0 of 1 tackles, 0 of 7 headers, 2 interceptions, 14 runs, and 1 assist.

[Eaglesfan27]

I awake in the morning to find the following midseason league table:

[Eaglesfan27]

A few midseason stats:

Our 54 goals for is 1st in the league.

Our 10 goals allowed is 2nd in the league, behind only Chelsea.

Our GD of plus 44 is 1st by 15 goals. Liverpool is 2nd with plus 29.


We have 11 players in the top 20 for Average Form in the League!!

1. Downing - 8.92

4. Rooney - 8.07

6. Djemba - 7.85

7. Schreurs - 7.79

8. Alfonso - 7.77

12. Adriano - 7.67

15. Howard - 7.63

17. Grygera - 7.62

18. Salva - 7.60

19. Fletcher - 7.57

20. Lucio 7.56



Rooney is 2nd in League goals with 13 behind Chelsea's Adriano who has 14.

My Adriano is 22nd with 6 league goals.

McFadden is 25th with 5 league goals.

Alan Smith is 35th with 4 league goals.



We have 3 of the top league assist men.

Downing and Schreurs are tied for 1st with 8 league assists each.

Alfonso is tied for 4th with 6 league assists.

Adriano is tied for 20th with 4 league assists as is Ortega.


Howard is tied for 3rd in the league with 4 MoM awards.

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 29, 2013 -

Today we travel to play Birmingham. They are currently 20th in the EPL. Robin van Persie is dangerous whether he is playing striker or left wing. Eusebiusz Smolarek is a talented right winger who has good passing ability. However, the offense doesn't have much beyoun these two who are the leading scorers. The team has only scored 13 goals in 19 games. Their defense is ok and Jose Moreira is playing well in goal, but he eventually gets overwhelmed each game. Matthew Upson is having a bad year and he has let the defense down quite a few times this year.


We are 4-7 favorites.

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


GK: Howard
DL: Cahais
DC: Lucio
DC: Salva
DR: Brown
ML: Alfonso
MC: Fletcher
MC: Djemba
MR: Schreurs
SC: Adriano
SC: King

S1: Taylor
S2: O'Shea
S3: Downing
S4: Rooney (probable from his injury)
S5: Marchetti

[Eaglesfan27]

3 minute mark: Alfonso with a sharp pass into the box to King.. he shoots.. wide right.

4 minute mark: King steals it in the midfield.. passes it to Adriano.. he shoots from 30 yards out.. strong curving shot.. the keeper dives.. blocks it.

9 minute mark: Cahais with a corner kick.. he kicks it short to Fletcher.... Fletcher passes to King in the middle of the box.. King shoots... upper right corner... GOAL!!!! 1-0. That is King's 15th of the year. I'm glad I didn't end up trading him for Adu.

16 minute mark: Alfonso passes to Schreurs just outside the right side of the box.... he shoots.. strong curving shot... upper right corner... Good save by the keeper.

30 minute mark: Moreira is stopping a large number of shots.

31 minute mark: Fletcher passes to King in the middle of the box.. King with a shoulder fake.. shoots.. lower right corner.. the keeper dives.. but he is out of position.. GOAL!!!! 2-0.



Halftime: 2-0 lead for us. They have about 30,000 fans here today.



58 minute mark: Cahais with a goal saving tackle... he is playing left back well.

66 minute mark: O'Shea on for the tired Cahais. Marchetti on in the midfield(!) for Fletcher who is exhausted.

89 minute mark: O'Shea throws it in deep in their turf to King in the left side of the box.. he performs a spin move on a defender.. passes it between two defenders to Schreurs in the right side of the box.. Schreurs shoots... upper left corner... GOAL!!!! 3-0.


Game over. 3-0 win.

We outshot them 16-6 (11-3 on target)

Fletcher won MoM, 10 for form, 52 of 58 passes, 8 key passes, 2 of 6 tackles, 2 of 5 headers, 1 run, and 2 assists.

Alfonso had a 9 for form.

[Eaglesfan27]

Dec. 31, 2013 -

Lucio, Fletcher, and Downing were all selected to the EPL Team of the Week.


Silvestre's contract will expire in 6 months.


Marino's contract will expire in 6 months.



I have decided to offer Helder Barbosa a Bosman contract. He is a left winger so this could create a logjam, but this player is a SUPERBLY talented left winger who looks like Downing in his prime except he isn't quite as fast. This kid is from Portugal and is playing for Porto so it will be interesting to see if he accepts my Bosman offer.

[Eaglesfan27]

January 1, 2014 -

The board is delighted with my performance as manager.



Stewart Downing has won the World Footballer of the Year Award! Rooney came in 2nd, and Joaquin of Real Madrid came in 3rd.


Stewart Downing has won the World Player of the Year Award. Joaquin came in 2nd, and Rooney came in 3rd.



Downing has won the European Footballer of the Year Award. Joaquin came in 2nd, and Rooney came in 3rd.



Tim Howard has won the European Goalkeeper of the Year Award!! Stipe Pletikosa of Werder Bremen came in 2nd, and Iker Casillas of Real Madrid came in 3rd.


Inter's Philipp Lahm has won the European Defender of the Year Award. Jorg Walther of Valencia came in 2nd, and Vincent Kompany of Real Madrid came in 3rd.



Downing has won the European Midfielder of the Year Award. Joaquin came in 2nd, and Eric Djemba Djemba came in 3rd!



Wayne Rooney has won the European Striker of the Year Award. Gianpaolo Pazzini of Valencia came in 2nd, and David Villa of Real zaragoza came in 2rd.






Stewart Downing has won the EPL Player of the Month Award. Momo of Tottenham came in 2nd, and Hatem Ben Arfa of Liverpool came in 3rd.


Salva has won the EPL Young Player of the Month! Blackburn's Craig Knight came in 2nd, and Ville-pekka Luukkonen of Aston Villa came in 3rd.



Chelsea's Mane has won the Manager of the Month Award. Tony Colbert of Liverpool came in 2nd, and Martin Jol of sunderland came in 3rd.

[Eaglesfan27]

January 1, 2014 -

Adriano has arrived and is very excited to be here. He is hoping to break into the first team with hard work. He is looking good enough that I will play him very soon. I'm going to leave Taylor as the backup today since Adriano just arrived, but Adriano will be at least the backup in our next match and I will get him a start soon.



Today we host Middlesbrough in an EPL Match. They are in 13th. They have an anemic offense with the leading scorer being Trond Fredrik Ludvigsen with 4 goals. Porcellis is second with 3 goals from the striker position. Chris Riggott and John Yates are good centrebacks but they are getting overwhelmed by the midfield's inability to control ball possession. Thorben Marx is the only midfielder playing really well. Jan Lastuvka is still a good keeper and can get hot at times.



We are 4-6 favorites.

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


GK: Howard
DL: O'Shea
DC: Lucio
DC: Ferdinand
DR: Grygera
ML: Downing
MC: Parker
MC: Stevanovic
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney (back from his injury)
SC: Adriano

S1: Taylor
S2: Marchetti
S3: Godoy
S4: King
S5: Ortega

[Eaglesfan27]

19 minute mark: Ferdinand gets a yellow card for a trip on Porcellis.

24 minute mark: Downing dribbles down the left sideline.. beats a defender.. dribbles past a second defender.. passes to Parker who is just inside the box.. Parker with a powerful shot.. upper left corner.. GOAL!!!! 1-0.


Halftime: 1-0 lead. We have about 70,000 fans here today.



I put Marchetti on for Ferdinand due to Ferdinand's yellow flag.


63 minute mark: Ortega on for Schreurs and Godoy on for Adriano.


66 minute mark: Parker intercepts at midfield.. passes to Godoy who passes back to Downing.. Downing passes it to Rooney in the left side of the box.. Rooney shoots.. lower right corner.. GOAL!!!! 2-0.



Game over. 2-0 win.

We outshot them 19-0 (11-0 on target)

Downing wins MoM, 10 for form, 17 of 18 passes, 1 of 1 tackles, 2 of 6 headers, 14 runs, 2 fouls drawn, and 2 assists.

Schreurs had a 9 for form.

[Eaglesfan27]

Jan 4, 2014 -

Chelsea has lost John Terry for 2 to 3 weeks due to a leg injury.


Helder Barbosa rejected Porto's offer and has signed a Bosman deal with us! The deal will be completed on July 1, 2014. I'm excited to add this 26 year old left winger with superb passing, flair, technique, and creativity to the team.



Today we travel to play Sunderland in the 3rd round of the English FA Cup. Sunderland is 7th in the EPL. Sunderland is led by the excellent play of striker Sheyi Emmanuel Adebayor who leads the team with 11 goals. Marco Streller is a good second striker with 6 goals. However, their left winger and left back are both out injured. They will need Luke Clark to step up at left wing. They also need Alberto Lopo to play excellent team football because Julio Arco is out injured. Luca Brunoni is a good keeper, but he will have his work cut out for him.


We are 4-7 favorites.

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


GK: Howard
DL: Schmidt
DC: Marchetti
DC: Salva
DR: Grygera
ML: Alfonso
MC: Fletcher
MC: Djemba
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney
SC: King

S1: Adriano (the keeper)
S2: Brown
S3: Ortega
S4: Godoy
S5: Cook

[Eaglesfan27]

4 minute mark: Schmidt starts the counter attack.... long pass down the length of the pitch.. Rooney gets to it just before it crosses the endline... centers it for Schreurs in the middle of the box.. he shoots.. just left of the keeper.. the keeper reacts too late.. GOAL!!!! 1-0.

13 minute mark: Djemba passes it into the box.. Rooney has it. puts a spin move on the defender.. shoots.. lower left corner... wide left.

29 minute mark: Grygera bodychecks Clark.. Clark is injured.. Grygera gets a yellow card.

39 minute mark: Rooney gets a yellow card for a trip on Wilson.


Halftime: 1-0 lead for us.


49 minute mark: Grygera with a long pass diagonally across the pitch the left corner... Rooney gets to it.. centers for Alfonso by the near post.. he heads it.. the keeper saves it.

64 minute mark: We have a flurry of shots stopped by the defenders and their keeper.

66 minute mark: Cook on for Fletcher, Godoy on for Rooney, and Ortega on for Schreurs.

73 minute mark: Marchetti gets a yellow card for a push on Hume just outside our box.

80 minute mark: Alfonso passes into the box to Godoy.. he shoots... upper left corner.. the keeper blocks it.

88 minute mark: Alfonso passes to Godoy in the left side of the box.. Godoy draws two defenders.. passes between them to Ortega.. he shoots.... upper right corner... GOAL!!!! 2-0.


Game over. 2-0 win.

We outshot them 18-13 (11-4 on target)

Fletcher wins MoM, 8 for form, 15 of 18 passes, 3 key passes, 7 of 8 tackles, 3 of 7 headers, 1 interception, 1 run, 2 fouls drawn.

All of my starters had an 8 for form.

[Eaglesfan27]

The statistician informs me that our 34 games unbeaten from August 10, 2013 to now is a new team record!

[Eaglesfan27]

January 5, 2014 -

Craig Alexander has left Harrogate Town to become the manager of Peterborough

Harrogate has fallen down the English Conference National where they are currently in 5th place.




Tottenham has offered 550,000 dollars immediately, 3.6 million over 2 years, and 40% of next sale for my right back Francesco Guarino. I don't see Francesco as the heir apparent and at the age of 24 he is unlikely to bloom much more. I agree to the offer.

[Eaglesfan27]

January 5, 2014 -

Milan have offered 17 million dollars for Barry Parker! Parker is really developing during this last year and both Fletcher and Djemba are aging. I tell them that I won't let him go for less than 40 million dollars.


Parma have offered 1.25 million up front, 3.8 million over 18 months, and 20% of next sale for Francesco Guarino. I accept their offer.

[Eaglesfan27]

Jan. 6, 2014 -

O'Shea, Schreurs, and Downing were all selected to the EPL Team of the Week.

We drew Bolton in the next round of the English FA Cup and will be hosting them.


January 7th, 2014 -

Milan have withdrawn their bid for Barry Parker.



January 8th, 2014 -

Sanli Tuncay who was trying to get a new contract from some team tore multiple ligaments in his knee and will miss at least 9 months. Chelsea will miss him this year.


Liverpool have offered 5 million up front for Francesco Guarino. I counter with an offer of 8 million as they are a main rival.


Liverpool have offered 20 million for Barry Parker. I counter with an offer of 50 million dollars.

[Eaglesfan27]

Jan 8, 2014 -

We travel to play Liverpool in the 1st round of the English League Cup Semi Final today. Liverpool is at full health now and will be very dangerous. I have to keep a close eye on Cisse who is such a dangerous scorer. Interestingly, they are reported to be considering starting young striker Fabio Liguori alongside him. I'll believe it when I see it. This kid seems to have a great deal of potential, but he is still raw at the age of 23. However, he does have 4 goals in 4 starts. Nigel Reo-Coker, Steven Gerrard, and Hatem Ben Arfa are all dangerous midfield players who can set up their strikers. Djimi Traore and Ryan Roberts are good centrebacks. Chris Kirkland is a very good keeper.


We are 5-4 favorites.

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


GK: Howard
DL: O'Shea
DC: Marchetti
DC: Salva
DR: Brown
ML: Downing
MC: Fletcher
MC: Djemba
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney
SC: Adriano

S1: Adriano (the keeper)
S2: Godoy
S3: Alfonso
S4: King
S5: Cahais

[Eaglesfan27]

16 minute mark: Downing passes to Rooney in the left side of the box, along the baseline.. Rooney dribbles parallel to the endline.. shoots.. parallel to the endline.. it curves.. upper right corner... GOAL!!!! 1-0! A great Rooney strike.

21 minute mark: Downing passes to Rooney in the left side of the box.. Rooney fakes out a defender.. shoots... upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 2-0!

33 minute mark: Downing dribbles down the left sideline.. past two defenders... crosses to Adriano in the middle of the box.. Adriano settles.. dribbles around Kirkland.. shoots.. lower right corner... GOAL!!!! 3-0.

38 minute mark: Ben Arfa dribbles past Brown doen the left sideline... centers for D'Alessandro.. he shoots.. it deflects off Marchetti into the left side of the net.. GOAL. 3-1 game.

44 minute mark: Clichy dribbles past Schreurs.. down the left sideline.. crosses it diagonally to the far post.. Aldo Andres Jara heads it.. into the upper left corner.. Howard dives.. it's past him. GOAL. 3-2 game.



Halftime: Up 3-2 in this exciting game. They have over 61,000 fans here today.



46 minute mark: Downing passes to Rooney just left of the box.. Rooney draws two defenders.. fires a pass between them.. to Adriano by the far post.. diving header... upper right corner... GOAL!!!! 4-2. That is Adriano's second of the game.

53 minute mark: Long pass from Salva in our own box to the opponent's box.. Adriano catches up to it 10 yards from the goal.... he shoots a sharply angled shot... lower left corner.. Kirkland dives.. it is past him... GOAL!!!! 5-2! That is Adriano's hattrick!

70 minute mark: Rooney steals it from the defender.. dribbles into the box.. shoots.. upper left corner.. Kirkland saves it. That was Rooney's last chance for the hattrick.

Rooney is winded, I put King on for him.

Alfonso on for Downing and Godoy on for Schreurs.

89 minute mark: Liquori steals the ball in our zone... he passes it into the box to Cisse.. Cisse fakes out O'Shea.. shoots.. upper right corner... GOAL. 5-3.



Game over. 5-3 win. Very nice result considering this was the away leg.

We outshot them 15-13 (8-8 on target)

Adriano wins MoM, 10 for form, 22 of 25 passes, 1 of 2 tackles, 10 of 15 headers, 1 interception, 3 fouls drawn, and 3 goals.

Rooney and Downing also had 10's for form.

I'm going to praise Adriano to the media after this game.

[Eaglesfan27]

January 10, 2014 -

Barcelona have made an enquiry about how much we want for Godoy. I respond 40 million dollars.


Guarino rejected Tottenham and has agreed to go to Parma. The deal worth 5 million can be completed now.



I've made the decision that our upcoming game against Fulham is the perfect time to start Adriano (the keeper) since Howard has had many games recently and because Fulham is relatively weak.

(OOC Note: I'm tired but am really excited to see this Adriano in action, hence just one more game before bed )

[Eaglesfan27]

January 11, 2014 -

Today we host Fulham in an EPL Match. We are in 1st while they are in 9th place. Fulham has a quick attack led by Helder Postiga and Thomas Hitzlsperger and they could give Adriano a good workout in goal. Imre Szabics is also becoming an accomplished scorer. Joaquin (a new and younger version) is becoming a good setup man in the midfield. Peter Whittingham is playing well on the left wing. Jonathan Woodgate has been an exceptional defender the last few weeks. Michael Rensing is a tough keeper.



We are 4-7 favorites.

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


GK: Adriano (in his debut!)
DL: Schmidt
DC: Lucio
DC: Ferdinand
DR: Grygera
ML: Downing
MC: Cook
MC: Parker
MR: Schreurs
SC: McFadden
SC: King

S1: Howard
S2: Ortega
S3: Alfonso
S4: Godoy
S5: Marchetti

[Eaglesfan27]

10 minute mark: Adriano stops a long range shot from Baros.

12 minute mark: Downing passes to Cook... Cook draws two defenders over.. short pass to Schreurs just outside the box.. he shoots... upper right corner... GOAL!!!! 1-0.

19 minute mark: Cook gets a yellow card for tripping John.

26 minute mark: Collins John returns the favor with a trip on Cook, earning himself a yellow card.

37 minute mark: Downing gets a yellow card for a trip on Milan Baros.




Halftime: 1-0 lead for us. We have over 66,000 fans here today.




67 minute mark: Baros with a close range shot... Adriano pushes it over the bar.

70 minute mark: Godoy on for Cook, Ortega on for Schreurs, and Alfonso on for Downing.

78 minute mark: Lucio trips John... Lucio gets away with a warning.

83 minute mark: Jay Tabb gets a breakaway... Adriano backpedals.. Jay Tabb shoots.. upper left corner.. Adriano catches it.

86 minute mark: Schmidt with a long throw-in.. into the box.. King gets it.. puts a spin move on the defender, Woodgate.... shoots... upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 2-0.


Game over. 2-0 win

We outshot them 15-7 (8-2 on target)

Adriano gets an 8 for form in his debut. He made some nice passes.

Downing wins MoM, 8 for form, 16 of 19 passes, 3 key passes, 1 of 2 tackles, 2 of 7 headers, 9 runs, and 1 foul drawn.

[daedalus]

Interesting to see Joaquin and Rooney flip-flop in the awards. That's spiff.

Also interesting to see a Real Madrid defender amongst the awards. A defender! The horror!

I don't know how good Luukkonen is or if that even matters but I think you should buy him just for the sake of having a cool name.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by daedalus

Interesting to see Joaquin and Rooney flip-flop in the awards. That's spiff.

Also interesting to see a Real Madrid defender amongst the awards. A defender! The horror!

I don't know how good Luukkonen is or if that even matters but I think you should buy him just for the sake of having a cool name.

He is a good looking young player, and I like his name too

However, it takes me the longest of all the names to type out properly

[daedalus]

He's one Ville-mudder-pekka!

[Eaglesfan27]

ROFL

January 13, 2014 -

Chelsea have spent 27 million dollars to sign Julien Ribeiro a talented attacking midfielder. I wonder if this means Adu might become expendable? Ribeiro has played well for Marseille during the past 3 years.

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

Eric Djemba Djemba has been called up by Cameroon for the African Cup of Nations squad.

[Eaglesfan27]

January 15, 2014 -

Middlesbrough has signed Milan Baros from Fulham on a Bosman deal.


Today we host Southampton in an EPL Match. They are 9th in the EPL while we are in 1st with an ever widening lead. Southampton is led by the excellent play of Robbin Kieft who has 19 goals on the year! Jorge Pina is a very good left winger who has chipped in 9 assists and 7 goals. Stefan de Weerd has 7 goals as well and is a good second striker. Jelle Van Damme leads the defense. Bobby Convey is playing well in the midfield. Iain Turner is a 29 year Scottish Keeper who is having his best year ever.



We are 4-6 favorites.

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


GK: Howard
DL: Cahais
DC: Lucio
DC: Salva
DR: Grygera
ML: Downing
MC: Fletcher
MC: Parker
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney
SC: Adriano

S1: Adriano 2 (as I'm going to start calling the keeper)
S2: O'Shea
S3: Alfonso
S4: Ortega
S5: Godoy

[Eaglesfan27]

11 minute mark: Cahais gets a yellow card for a trip on Kieft.


Howard with a brilliant save on the ensuing free kick by Kieft.

41 minute mark: A long series of probing passes between our midfielders... finally Fletcher moves to the left side of the box.. Fletcher with a short cross to the near post... Adriano with a header... upper left corner.... GOAL!!!! 1-0.

43 minute mark: Schreurs passes it to Adriano in the right side of the box.. Adriano with a crossover dribble around one defender... shoots... lower left corner.. sharply angled shot.. the keeper misses it.. GOAL!!!! 2-0.



Halftime: 2-0 lead for us. We have over 68,000 fans here today.



56 minute mark: Downing dribbles down the left sideline... crosses to Rooney in the middle of the box.. Rooney heads it.. nice save by the keeper.

62 minute mark: Downing passes to Rooney who is 30 yards away from the keeper.. Rooney shoots.. long range curving shot.. upper right corner... the keeper dives... saves it.

63 minute mark: Alfonso on for Downing, Godoy on for Rooney, and Ortega on for Schreurs.

82 minute mark: Parker passes it to the right corner of the pitch... Adriano gets to it.. draws over a defender.. passes to Ortega in the right side of the box... Ortega with hard shot towards the lower right corner.. it hits the keeper in the shoulder... and bounces in!!! GOAL!!!!! 3-0.


Game over. 3-0 win

We outshot them 16-4 (10-1 on target)

Adriano wins MoM, 10 for form, 17 of 21 passes, 2 key passes, 1 of 1 tackles, 8 of 14 headers, 1 interception, 6 runs, 1 foul drawn, 1 assist, and 2 goals.

[Eaglesfan27]

January 18, 2014 -

Manchester City have signed Owen Hargreaves from FC Bayern for 700,000 dollars. Hargreaves is showing his age, but still has some skills left.


Today we host Bolton in the 4th round of the English FA Cup. Bolton is 13th in the EPL and they have a decent team. Their best player Achille Emana is off on international duty and that will hurt them. Kevin Nolan is a dangerous midfielder who is the leading scorer with 9 goals on the year. Filipe Oliveira is the leading striker with 7 goals. Nasief Morris and Dennis Cagara are leading the defense. Alexandre Negri is 32, but he is still a very good keeper.


We are 1-2 favorites.

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


GK: Howard
DL: Schmidt
DC: Marchetti
DC: Salva
DR: Brown
ML: Downing
MC: Stevanovic
MC: Cook
MR: Schreurs
SC: McFadden
SC: King

S1: Adriano 2
S2: Godoy
S3: O'Shea
S4: Alfonso
S5: Ortega

[Eaglesfan27]

7 minute mark: Downing with a long cross.. the keeper punches it away from King.. Cook gets it.. he shoots from 25 yards out.. powerful banana shot... upper left corner... GOAL!!!! 1-0.

17 minute mark: WOW!!! Downing passes to McFadden in the left side of the box.. McFadden dribbles along the endline.. he shoots.. parallel to the endline.. curving... into the upper right corner... GOAL!!!! 2-0! Could Rooney have shown him how to do that shot? It was the mirror image of Rooney's endline shot



Halftime: 2-0 lead for us.



King is totally gassed for some reason, I'm going to watch him for a minute or two to see if he regains his energy in the 2nd half, but if not I'll put Godoy in soon.

49 minute mark: Godoy on for King who is exhausted and Alfonso on for Downing who is very tired.

58 minute mark: Our midfielders are passing it back and forth.. Stevanovic passes to Alfonso left of the box.. he crosses it to Cook in the right edge of the box.. Cook chips it... over a defender and the keeper.. into the upper left corner! GOAL!!!! 3-0.

61 minute mark: Godoy gets a yellow card for a trip on Cagara. Ortega on for Schreurs who is tired.

73 minute mark: Steanovic steals it at midfield.. passes it to Ortega who heads it to Godoy just outside the box.. Godoy fakes out a defender.. dribbles into the box.. shoots from 19 yards... lower right corner.. the keeper dives.. it is out of his reach! GOAL!!!! 4-0! That is Godoy's 5th goal of the year!

79 minute mark: McFadden steals it at midfield.. passes it long to Godoy.. Godoy dribbles between two defenders. into the right half of the box.. shoots... lower left corner.. the keeper dives.. misses it! GOAL!!!! 5-0! Godoy with his second! This kid is magical at times


Game over. 5-0 win

We outshot them 12-9 (8-4 on target)

McFadden wins MoM, 9 for form, 10 of 11 passes, 2 key passes, 1 of 2 tackles, 2 of 10 headers, 1 interception, 6 runs, 3 fouls drawn, 1 assist, and 1 goal.

Godoy has a 9 for form with 2 goals. Ditto for Cook.

[Eaglesfan27]

January 20, 2014 -

Blackburn fans are in shock after Brett Emerton tore ligaments in his right knee. He will miss the remainder of the season and part of next season.


Fletcher, Downing, and Adriano were all selected to the EPL Team of the Week.



We will travel to play Manchester City in the 5th round of the English FA Cup.

[Eaglesfan27]

Jan. 21, 2014 -

Newcastle have paid 22 million to land Dion Dickhoff from Aston Villa. Dickhoff can play sweeper, defender, or midfielder and he is a very skilled player, but he is 28 already and I think they overpaid a bit.



Jan 22, 2013 -

Today we play Liverpool in the 2nd leg of our English League Cup Semi-Final. Liverpool are the holders of this, but we are up 5-3 on aggregate. We just need to hold serve at home. However, I'm taking nothing for granted and pulling out most of my best players.


We are 5-4 favorites.


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


GK: Howard
DL: Schmidt
DC: Lucio
DC: Salva
DR: Grygera
ML: Downing
MC: Fletcher
MC: Cook
MR: Schreurs
SC: Rooney
SC: Adriano

S1: Adriano, GK (I decided I don't like Adriano 2)
S2: Godoy
S3: Ortega
S4: King
S5: Marchetti

[Eaglesfan27]

1st minute: Gerrard passes to Cisse in the left side of the box.. Cisse with a powerful curving shot... upper right corner... Howard dives.. blocks it!

7 minute mark: Cisse with a long range shot.. Gerrard gets teh rebound.. passes it back to Nino Ferro.. Ferro blasts a curving shot... upper left corner... It's out of Howard's reach. GOAL. Down 1-0 (5-4 our lead on aggregate.)

24 minute mark: Downing passes it to Rooney in the enemy's zone... Rooney fakes out Maduro.. he fakes out Holmes.. dribbles into the box.. shoots.. lower right corner... past the keeper... GOAL!!!! 1-1! That is Rooney's 20th goal of the year.

25 minute mark: Cook steals the ball... passes it to Adriano who heads it to Rooney outside the box... Rooney dribbles between two defenders... fakes out the keeper... shoots.. lower left corner... GOAL!!!! 2-1.

40 minute mark: Kirkland stops a flurry of our shots.


44 minute mark: Grygera gets a yellow card for tripping Cisse.



Halftime: 2-1 lead (7-4 on aggregate.) We have over 91,000 fans here today screaming loudly!



Schreurs picked up a minor injury and is limping badly. I'm putting Ortega in for him.



46 minute mark: Grygera picks up a serious injury and falls to the ground grabbing his ankle. I put Marchetti on for him.

51 minute mark: Wayne Bridge with a long diagonal cross to the far post... Ferro outjumps Salva and Howard... heads it... into the upper right corner.. GOAL. 2-2 game.

58 minute mark: Fletcher collides with Bridge and Fletcher is hurt. He has to come off. I put Godoy in for him.

61 minute mark: Rooney gets the ball at midfield.. dribbles down the left sideline.. past two defenders.. cuts towards the post.. dribbling along the baseline.. is he going to shoot.. draws another defender over.. fires a pass to the far post.. Ortega heads it.. the keeper dives.. gets a hand on it.. but it bounces in! GOAL!!!! 3-2! That is Ortega's 5th of the year.

76 minute mark: Rooney tries a 30 yard banana shot from midfield.. the keeper has a nice save.



Game over. 3-2 win for us 8-5 win on aggregate.

We outshot them 14-12 (10-6 on target)

Rooney wins MoM, 10 for form, 12 of 14 passes, 1 key pass, 0 tackles, 5 of 9 headers, 1 interception, 8 runs, 1 foul drawn, 1 assist, and 2 goals.

[Eaglesfan27]

Post Match Info:

We've been given 900,000 for winning the English League Cup Semi Final.

We will be playing Fulham in the League Cup Final. Fulham beat the Wolves 3-1 on aggregate.


Grygera has a partially torn calf muscle and will miss about a month.


Fletcher has a gash in his shin and is expected to miss our next game.

[Eaglesfan27]

January 25, 2014 -

WOW! Liverpool have offered 54 million immediately for Craig King. This former wonderkid is not as fast as I would like, but he has really become my third best striker this year, and he is only 24 and still might get a bit better. He has 17 goals for me in 19 starts and 8 reserve appearances. I'm going to reject this offer and counter with 110 million as my asking price. I don't want to lose this kid. Hopefully, I can keep him happy as a 3rd option.


Auxerre has signed Robin van Persie on a Bosman deal.

[Eaglesfan27]

January 26, 2013 -

Inter have offered 12 million for Alfonso. I counter with an offer of 36 million as I really don't want to lose him, but I would let him go at that price because I have my other left winger coming in and Alfonso is becoming a bit restless for more 1st team action. Of course, I don't expect them to pay 36 million for him and I'd be happy to keep Alfonso.


Chelsea have paid Southampton 22 million for striker Stefan De Weerd. Stefan is 27 and is a very good, but not great striker. I'm a little surprised at this move. Again, I wonder if Adu might be available soon


Rostock has signed Jonathan Spector from Leicester for 1.5 million dollars. Spector never lived up to his enormous potential.


Arsenal has lost Kolo Abib Toure after this year as the player has decided to go to Chievo on a Bosman signing.

[Eaglesfan27]

3 minute mark: I look on in shock as Miguel steals it at midfield.. passes it to Durand who heads it to Bernard in teh middle of the box.. Benjamin Bernard shoots.. lower right corner.. Howard dives.. it is past him! GOAL. Down 1-0.

16 minute mark: Alfonso dribbles down the left sideline.. passes to Parker who is just inside the left half of the box.. Parker shoots.. upper right corner.. it's past the keeper.. GOAL!!!! 1-1.



Halftime: 1-1 tie.



63 minute mark: Godoy on for King who is tired, and Wood on for Cook. I also tell the offense to go wide open.

66 minute mark: Gorlitz gets a yellow card for tripping Alfonso.

70 minute mark: Lucio gets a yellow card for tripping Defoe.

71 minute mark: Woof gets a yellow card for pushing Luis Carlos.. Godoy argues the call.. he gets a yellow card.


73 minute mark: Gorlitz pushes Alfonso.. he gets his second yellow card.. Gorlitz is sent off.

78 minute mark: Alfonso passes to Wood outside the box.. he blasts a shot.. upper right corner... the keeper saves it.

86 minute mark: Alfonso passes to Ortega in the right side of the box.. he shoots.. upper right corner.. the keeper saves it.

89 minute mark: Alfonso passes over Godoy's head and we miss a good opportunity.

92 minute mark: Alfonso passes to McFadden in the left side of the box.. McFadden crosses it to the far post.. Ortega traps.. shoots... upper right corner.. GOAL!!!! 2-1! Durand has to be carried off the pitch due to an injury.


Game over. 2-1 win

We outshot them 18-4 (9-2 on target)

Ortega wins MoM, 10 for form, 30 of 36 passes, 7 key passes, 1 of 2 tackles, 2 of 5 headers, 1 interception, 7 runs, 2 fouls drawn, and 1 goal.

Alfonso also had a 10 for form.

(Hmm, I seem to have forgotten to post my prematch summary. Newcastle is in disarray and is in 17th in the EPL!!! They are in serious danger of being relegated. They are also on the point of mutiny.)