Foussball: FC Victoria Rosport (FM 13)

[Greyfriars Bobby]

20 April 2013

Mondercange 4-3 Rosport

GK: Hartert
D: Schroeder, Da Luz, Molitor, Babacic
M: Rodrigues, Wittek, Backes, Feller
ST: Neves Cunha, Codello

The reserves took the pitch today, along with several debutants. The result was an exciting, entertaining match and, despite the result, I'm glad I played it the way I did.

How often do you see a 4-3 match in which only two players score a goal? That's what happened today.

Marc Heiderscheid found the net four times for Mondercange. I tried everything against him, to no avail...even subbing in Kevin Maiget. It was simply Marc's day, and I tip my cap to him.

And, Rosport supporters, meet Arlindo Neves Cunha. He's a 19-year-old striker who presents you with a hat trick on his debut as a first team footballer. ANC is used to scoring goals, however. He's potted 13 for our U20 side this year. How often do you rate 9.5 and not be named Man of the Match? That's what happened to ANC today, but I was quick to praise his performance in our post-match talk, and again with the media afterwards.

Claude Codello (8.4) had two assists, and played another very solid game.

With two league fixtures left, we're five points clear in the Promotion Division. I'd like to win the league, so the first teamers will return to the pitch for at least one of those matches.

And, it was very cool to see my job status move all the way up to "Untouchable."


There is a historic church in Mondercange, a town in southwestern Luxembourg.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

1 May 2013
Luxembourg Cup, Quarter-Final

Rosport 2-1 RS Hamm Benfica

GK: Oster
D: Lickes, Loose, Maiget, Bernard
M: Rodrigues, Leweck, Pazos, Ferreira
ST: Schiltz, Laroche

We went into the match as big-time underdogs, even though the match is at our grounds. Hamm Benfica are a middle-of-the-table club in the National Division, and according to our scouting report (yes, I hired a new scout) they're stronger at some positions and not as strong in others. I felt better about our chances than the bookies did.

The pundits actually called us favorites in their pre-match analysis.

We're sporting our navy kit today, since Hamm Benfica wear red. I like seeing the navy every once in a while, as a chance of pace.

Things did not start out well. THIRTY SECONDS into the game, Olivier Lickes challenged a Hamm Benfica player who had the ball along the touchline and slid into him with both boots high. Lickes was shown a straight red card. Bye-bye, Olivier. So, now we'll face a strong side with only ten men for at least 89 minutes.

What to do now? I brought us out with a Counter mentality, and now I dialed it back even more to Defensive, which isn't the way I typically like to play until the later minutes of a game we're leading. Rodrigues, who is actually a better wingback than he is a midfielder, drops back, so I have this funky-looking formation with a snake-like shape in the back.

Hamm Benfica smell blood in the water, and it looks like they have 22 men buzzing around our goal. Oster makes an absolutely sick save, and Maiget clears away the danger.

On 12', Alphonse Leweck latches on to a Hamm Benfica goal kick and heads it over to Laurent Schiltz. He notices Jeremy Laroche ahead and to his right. Jeremy has some space, but there are two defenders between him and the keeper.

Laurent's ball could not have been better. He plays it ahead of Jeremy, so he can run onto it at full speed. Their defenders react well and close down on him at the top right corner of the area. Jeremy swerves to his left and fires. The ball zips past their diving keeper into the left corner of the net. 1-0 Rosport!

Right before the half, Leweck played the ball into the area, where Schiltz had slipped past his marker. Laurent had to put his shot in just the right place, because the keeper was positioned just right. This time Laurent won the battle. 2-0 Rosport!

They pulled one back on 67 minutes, and I brought in the best defensive players I had available. Marc Binsfeld came in for Pazos, and Thomas Battaglia replaced Laroche. Hamm Benfica threw everything they had at us, but we managed to hold on.

This was a big, big win...and we did it with only 10 men on the pitch!

We're through to the semifinals, where we will host Differdange, the Cup holders, on the 19th.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

4 May 2013

Una Strassen 1-3 Rosport

GK: Oster
D: Scholer, Battaglia, Maiget, Bernard
M: Feller, Jans, Binsfeld, Ferreira
ST: Schiltz, Laroche

Christophe Scholer replaced Lickes today, because Olivier is serving a one-match ban for his red card. I didn't appeal it, because Olivier's foul was vicious. I warned him, too, and he took it like a man. We're good.

Pit Theis, my new assistant, really likes Thomas Battaglia, and with Yannick Loose recovering slowly from the Cup match, Thomas gets the nod at center back. Kevin Feller is in the starting XI, too; Rodrigues is gassed and Rakic is hurt. Binsfeld is fitter than Leweck, so he's in the team, too.

It's the best side I can put together today, because we can clinch the Promotion Division championship if we win and Swift Hesperange lose away to Oberkorn.

It was a scoreless match until 42', when Jeremy Laroche buried a direct free kick. Unless I've forgotten one, it's our first goal off a DFK all season. Not two minutes later, Laurent Schiltz added another, off yet another inch-perfect pass from Carlos Ferreira. Una Strassen scored early in the second half, but Laroche put Schiltz through for an insurance goal, and that's how it ended. Schiltz, with his 17th and 18th league goals, was Man of the Match (8.8).

And, our old buddy Steve Bettmer's side did us a favor, scoring a late goal to upset Swift Hesperange, 2-1.

Victoria Rosport FC are the 2013 Promotion Division Champions!

Captain Jeff Oster happily accepted the championship trophy, and we'll show it to our supporters next week at our final home fixture in the league.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

11 May 2013

Rosport 3-1 Diekirch

GK: Oster
D: Scholer, Maiget, Loose, Bernard
M: Rodrigues, Leweck, Battaglia, Ferreira
ST: Schiltz, Laroche

A season record crowd of 574 turned out at Victoriarena to watch us defeat Diekirch in our final league match of the 2012-13 season.

Goals by Jeremy Laroche and Kevin Maiget got us off the blocks quickly. Maiget's was a sharp header from a Ferreira corner.

I wanted Laurent Schiltz to get a big ovation from the supporters, so I subbed him out at 86'. What did his replacement, Anton Bozic do? He fired in a goal in stoppage time.

Yesterday, the Football Association announced that Olivier Lickes would serve a two-match ban for violent conduct in the Cup quarterfinal. That's why he didn't play tonight, and he'll also miss the semifinal against Differdange.

With the Promotion Division season done, save the playoffs, here's what awaits several of the clubs.

• Rumelange, the third place club, will play Grevenmacher, 12th in the National Division. The winner earns a spot in the National Division for next year.
• Erpeldange, 12th in the Promotion Division, faces Avenir Beggen. The winner will play in the Promotion Division; if Erpeldange lose, they are relegated.
• Oberkorn, who's 11th in the Promotion Division, faces a similar playoff against Spora, with a spot in the Promotion Division at stake.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

19 May 2013

Our Luxembourg Cup semi-final against Differdange is today, and the promotion/relegation playoffs also took place this afternoon.

Avenir Beggen won promotion to the Promotion Division with a 2-0 victory over Erpeldange. My former assistant, Kevin Bianchini, will be managing at a lower level next season.

Rumelange will join us in the National Division next year, after their 1-0 victory over Grevenmacher.

Two extra-time goals gave Steve Bettmer's Oberkorn side a 3-1 triumph over Spora that preserved Oberkorn's place in the National Division.

Here's the final Promotion Division table for 2012-13:

[Greyfriars Bobby]

19 May 2013
Luxembourg Cup Semi-Final

Rosport 2-1 Differdange

GK: Oster
D: Scholer, Loose, Maiget, Bernard
M: Rakic, Pazos, Leweck, Ferreira
ST: Laroche, Schiltz

We're through to the final, on the strength of a 2-1 victory over Differdange, a strong National Division side with five Luxembourg internationals in their ranks.

Jeremy Laroche's goal on 10' was quickly answered by Differdange's Alen Milak. A tough, gritty defensive battle ensued, until Christophe Pazos put Laurent Schiltz through for the game-winner, three minutes short of full time.

Yannick Loose once again delivered a Man of the Match performance (7.5), anchoring a back line that had to deal with the constant threats of forwards like Milak and Omar Er Rafik.

Next up will be Dudelange, whom we'll face at Stade Jozy Barthel a week from today.

A nice plus: reaching the semi-final put a cool €5000 in our bank account.

[bbgunn]

Congrats on winning the division!

[Greyfriars Bobby]

Originally Posted by bbgunn

Congrats on winning the division!

Thanks! We were the pre-season favorite, so I'm glad the side made the predictions come true.

I've never managed a league champion in Football Manager, so this has been a lot of fun. It's a different kind of reward from a victory in a knockout competition; I've won a minor cup with a FM club before. The excitement of a "one and done" situation can be exhilarating, and the satisfaction of proving yourself over the long haul provides a different kind of reward.

Now we'll see how the National Division treats us. It will be interesting to see what the board's expectations for next season will be. Last year's Promotion Division winner, Wiltz, is going right back down after one season in the top flight. They finished 13th, two points from safety.

Thanks for following along and commenting.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

26 May 2013
Luxembourg Cup Final
FC Victoria Rosport v. F91 Dudelange
Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg

GK: Jeff Oster (C)
D: Christophe Scholer, Kevin Maiget, Yannick Loose, Billy Bernard
M: Andy Rakic, Christophe Pazos, Alphonse Leweck, Carlos Ferreira
ST: Jeremy Laroche, Laurent Schiltz

For the first time in their 85-year history, FC Victoria Rosport stepped onto the pitch at Luxembourg's national stadium to play for the Luxembourg Cup.

Our opponent, Dudelange, have reached the final three times since their founding in 1991, and lost last year's final to Differdange. They were runners-up in the National Division this year, losing the title by a single point to Jeunesse Esch. Of course they entered the match as favorites, led by Luxembourg forward Joel Kitenge.

It was clear from the opening whistle that, again, we were facing a much higher level of competition than we did in the Promotion Division. Laroche or Schiltz would appear to break free, and Dudelange defenders would close the gap. Schiltz released a ferocious strike about midway through the first half, but their keeper, Michael Menetrier, swallowed it up.

However, Dudelange weren't able to score against us, either. Yannick Loose, in particular, was wherever he needed to be to foil their attacks. Through 90 minutes, the score remained 0-0.

Jeremy Laroche had picked up a knock early in the second half, but I left him on the pitch. I subbed Thomas Battaglia for Maiget, who was suffering through a very rare off night, and Pazos (whose fitness has never been exemplary) was gassed and came off for Marc Binsfeld.

I'm glad I stuck with Jeremy. On 98 minutes, he took a pass from the maestro, Ferreira, got just enough space, and fired for the top of the net, just far enough right to elude Menetrier's fingertips. Goal, Rosport!

I set everything that could be set to defensive and waited for Dudelange to attack. We nearly got a second goal on the counter, Schiltz banging a shot hard off the crossbar, but Oster didn't have to make a save in the last 20 minutes.

Final score: Rosport 1, Dudelange 0.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

12 June 2013

The players have been on their break since the beginning of the month, and they won't return for a few more days. On the 10th we're hosting our Cup final opponents, Dudelange, in our first pre-season friendly. That should be interesting, shouldn't it?

We earned €5000 for making the final, and another €20,000 for winning it. Needless to say, the board is pretty happy with that. I'm trying to figure out what kind of upgrades I might want to ask them for, while my "political capital" and their bank balance are both high.

Two of the players have represented their country in the weeks since our season ended.

On 7 June, Luxembourg hosted Portugal in a World Cup qualifier at a sold-out Stade Jozy Barthel. Kevin Maiget was in the starting XI at center back. Portugal won, 3-1, which surprised nobody, and Maiget had an experience he'll tell his grandkids about. He was turned inside out by Cristiano Ronaldo, who then scored a very emphatic goal.

Kevin fared much better in a 1-1 draw with Hungary yesterday. He started, played 80 minutes, and posted a 7.1 rating that was the best along the Luxembourg back line. It was a friendly, but it was still a fine performance.

Left back Daniel Schroeder, who had a good season for our U20 side, received his first U21 caps in two lopsided losses against Norway and Singapore. None of the Luxembourgers played well, so Daniel's in good company with his mediocre performances.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

24 June 2013

The players have returned, because we need to prepare for our first European competition.

As the Luxembourg Cup holders, we're qualified for the EURO Cup competition. We were placed in the First Qualifying Round, and we've drawn FK Jagodina as our opponent.

Jagodina is a club in the Serbian SuperLeague, the highest division in Serbian football. They are one of the higher profile clubs in Serbia, behind only Partizan, Red Star, and possibly Vojvodina. They will be a formidable opponent, and the first leg of the tie will be played there on 4 July. We'll host the second leg on 11 July, so the friendly against Dudelange is now off the schedule.

In the meantime, we've scheduled a friendly against Jeunesse Esch on the 29th.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

30 June 2013

Today, the supporters named Laurent Schiltz their Player of the Year. Their choice wasn't surprising, but they picked the most deserving player.

Here is Rosport's Best Eleven for 2012-13:





I would have chosen Laroche over Bozic, even without Jeremy's Cup-winning goal. Still, I'd take this side into battle any day.

I also learned that the board is going to turn FC Victoria Rosport into a semi-professional club!

I will have a yearly salary budget of €329,000 and a transfer budget of €6,250 to work with.

Now I will have a new challenge: keeping a high-quality side together within the constraints of a budget. I have a lot of research to do...which of my current players do I try to sign? Which ones do I allow to walk away? Do I try to sign someone new during the July transfer window?

Stay tuned...

[Greyfriars Bobby]

I've managed semi-professional clubs in FM before, but I've always taken the job with those clubs already established at that level. When I took over, they had players under contract, with a certain amount the club's salary budget already dedicated to them.

This time, I have NO players under contract and €329,000 to spend. My backroom staff isn't under contract, either...so I'll have to hire them, too.

So, here's the situation I face.

Here's the maximum salary the board will pay a player at each status level:

Key Player €22,000
First Team €9,500
Rotation €5,500
Backup €4,200
Hot Prospect €9,500
Youngster €6,500

And here's what they'll pay staff members:
Assistant Manager: €20,500
Coach: €12,500
Head Physio: €10,000
Chief Scout: €11,250
Scout: €3,200
I've been given permission to add more coaches and scouts now, too.

Before I begin, there's one thing I wish I knew. What might happen to the players in my club if I don't offer them part-time contracts? Will some of them stick around as amateurs, or will they all leave?

Right now they're all on amateur contracts, with no expiration dates...so if I simply left them alone, might some of them remain with Rosport as amateurs? I'm assuming some of the better players, like Kevin Maiget or Billy Bernard, will sign with another club if I don't offer them a semi-pro contract. I'm obviously going to offer them the opportunity to turn pro with Rosport. It's the more marginal guys I'm thinking about.

Any insight any of you could provide would be helpful.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

In the meantime, I'm taking a look at what kinds of salary requests my players have, starting with the goalkeepers. I'm also providing their ages, and my assistant manager's evaluation of their current and potential ability.

Goalkeepers

Jeff Oster: Age 23. 1 star current ability, 3.5 stars potential
Asking for €2,200 and Rotation status

Kevin Hartert: Age 34. 0.5 stars current/potential
Asking for €1,300 and Backup status

The two younger keepers in our system are asking for €2,800 and €1,700 respectively, and they each have 0.5 star potential.

My first inclination is to offer both Jeff and Kevin what they're asking for. After all, I could afford to pay about 150 Jeff Osters at that salary. I realize I'll also have various bonuses to pay (appearance, goal, clean sheet, loyalty, etc.), too.

I might instead see if there's a younger guy out there who would play for us for about the same thing we'd be paying Hartert.

Again, please feel free to chime in with any suggestions, feedback, etc.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

Defenders

Billy Bernard: Age 22. 4.0 current/potential
Asking for €7,750 and Key Player status

Yannick Loose: Age 28. 1.5 current/potential€
Asking for €2,600 and Backup status

Kevin Maiget: Age 22. 4.5 current/potential
Asking for €8,000 and Key Player status

Christophe Scholer: Age 23. 2.0 current/3.5 potential
Asking for €2,300 and Backup status; €2,900 if he appears for Luxembourg

Thomas Battaglia: Age 20. 3.5 current/4.0 potential
Asking for €4,100 and First Team status

Tim Heinz: Age 29. 2.0 current/potential
Asking for €2,400 and Backup status

Gregory Molitor: Age 33. 1.0 current/potential
Asking for €2,600 and Backup status. Jeunesse Esch has major interest in signing him.

Almin Babacic: Age 29. 1.0 current/potential
Asking for €2,300 and Backup status

Laurent Pellegrino: Age 40. 0.5 current/potential
Asking for €1,300 and Backup status

Reinaldo Da Luz: Age 16. 0.5 silver current/2.0 potential
Asking for €5,000 and Hot Prospect status

I'm guessing I wouldn't have to offer part-time contracts to my 14-year-olds to get them to stay, would I?

It looks like it would cost me €38,350 to pay all these guys' salaries.

I like Pellegrino and if I can afford to keep him, I will. He's our vice captain, and he's tutoring Patrick Redzepagic, a 14-year-old center back. I'm tempted to let Molitor go, since he's asking for more than the other reserves and doesn't offer as much bang for the buck.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

Midfielders

Carlos Ferreira: Age 32. 4.0 current/potential
Asking for €8,000 and Key Player status

Alphonse Leweck: Age 31. 3.0 current/potential
Asking for €3,000 and First Team status. Differdange is interested in signing him.

Christophe Pazos: Age 23. 3.5 current/4.0 potential
Asking for €2,800 and First Team status; €3,500 if he appears for Luxembourg

Andy Rakic: Age 32. 2.5 current/potential
Asking for €2,400 and Backup status.

Laurent Jans: Age 20. 4.0 current/potential
Asking for €7,500 and Key Player status; €9,750 if he appears for Luxembourg

Thorsten Wittek: Age 36. 2.0 current/potential
Asking for €2,200 and Backup status. Ulm, from the German Third Division, is interested in signing him.

Marc Binsfeld: Age 26. 3.0 current/potential
Asking for €2,900 and Backup status; €3,800 if he appears for Luxembourg

Jonathan Rodrigues: Age 22. 1.5 current/2.0 potential
Asking for €2,500 and Backup status.

Kevin Feller: Age 19. 1.0 silver current/1.5 potential
Asking for €2,800 and Youngster status; €3,400 after 30 league games

Theo Backes: Age 16. 1.0 silver current/2.0 potential
Asking for €4,900 and Youngster status; €6,250 after 30 league games

The entire bill for signing all the midfielders would come to €39,000, with another €6,000 or so if all the incentives kicked in.

Jans won't be cheap, but he's a boss, and he's only 20. I'm definitely making him an offer. The supporters would have my head if I let Ferreira get away, although his attributes have begun to slip a little bit. I'd like to think Backes will be his heir apparent; we'll see. It will be pricey to find out.

It might be time to let Wittek go, especially if I can sign almost all the guys who are better than he is.

Again, any comments would be welcome.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

Forwards

Laurent Schiltz: Age 31. 2.5 current/potential
Asking for €4,400 and First Team status

Jeremy Laroche: Age 32. 4.0 current/potential
Asking for €4,500 and First Team status

Roland Saboga: Age 34. 3.0 current/potential
Asking for €2,500 and Backup status

Anton Bozic: Age 27. 3.5 current/potential
Asking for €3,000 and First Team status; €3,900 if he appears for Luxembourg. Avenir Beggen is interested in signing him.

Alex Pott: Age 24. 2.5 current/3.0 potential
Asking for €3,100 and Backup status; €4,000 if he appears for Luxembourg.

Claude Codello: Age 20. 2.5 silver current/0.5 potential
Asking for €2,800 and Youngster status; €3,500 after 30 league games

Arlindo Neves Cunha: Age 20. 0.5 silver current/0.5 potential
Asking for €300 and Youngster status; €350 after 30 league games

I would have thought these glamour boys would command top dollar, but their combined salary requests total €20,600. Add in about €2,500 more if they all meet their incentives.

I've already offered Laurent Schiltz his contract. The folks in Rosport would want him to be the Grand Duke of Luxembourg, as long as he could still turn out for the club.

ANC's hat trick against Erpeldange more than earned him 300 euros.

Pott and Schiltz also help the club in another way. They were trained at Rosport for three years between the ages of 15-21, and we must have four such players on our 25-man roster for the EURO Cup.

If my math is correct, the total salary bill for all the players I've listed above comes to €105,950. That's less than a third of our budget! Could this be?

Do I possibly have the money to try to lure some exciting new talent to Rosport? Do I even want to do that, and risk damaging the mojo we've created with our 2012-2013 double?

[Greyfriars Bobby]

4 July 2013

After taking a quick look around at the quality of the players who might be interested in signing with Rosport, I decided to offer contracts to almost all the cast of characters from last year's side. The board made it possible for me to meet the players' requests, so I figured it was probably good to go ahead and offer contracts before other clubs had a chance to snap them up.

Here are the players who have signed for Rosport for next season:

Goalkeepers: Oster, Hartert.
Defenders: Maiget, Bernard, Loose, Heinz, Babacic, Scholer, Lickes, Pellegrino.
Midfielders: Ferreira, Jans, Battaglia, Leweck, Binsfeld, Pazos, Feller, Rakic, Wittek.
Forwards: Schiltz, Laroche, Pott, Bozic, Saboga, Neves Cunha.

I did sign one new player, and I'm excited to bring him on board. His name is Tom Siebenaler, and I first noticed him playing as Kevin Maiget's center-back partner for Luxembourg. He's 22, and our staff rates him as a 3.5 star player, with the potential to add another half-star. That assessment fits well with his attributes; he's big, strong, fast, and a rugged tackler. Tom signed with us from Differdange, where he played in 26 matches last season. He'll be paid €5,250 this season.

With Siebenaler on board, we're paying just under €95,000 in salaries. I've also signed assistant manager Pit Theis for €15,000 and coach Mike Hoffman for €12,500. Our scout, Manou Schauls, turned down our offer, but he's still hanging around, working for nothing. So is our physio, who is, frankly, terrible.

I've made a few transfer offers, and we'll see if anything comes of them. Meanwhile, it's off to Serbia for the first leg of our EURO Cup tie.

[bbgunn]

Sorry I can't give any advice about the contracts, but you are lucky to be able to sign your whole cast!

[Greyfriars Bobby]

4 July 2013
EURO Cup, First Qualifying Round

Jagodina 1-0 Rosport

GK: Oster
D: Scholer, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
M: Pazos, Leweck, Battaglia, Ferreira
ST: Schiltz, Laroche

I don't think anyone is too surprised by this result, unless they expected Jagodina to beat us by more than one goal. Honestly, I'm not too put off by it, either. Their goal was a very good one, scored by a very talented striker. Guys like Franja Lilic are paid good money to score goals, and for good reason.

I didn't start Andy Rakic, who wasn't close to being fit after straining a thigh muscle in training, and Billy Bernard picked up a knock and had to go off at 33'. Billy will be OK, but we missed him in the back.

We didn't win, but we left ourselves in a decent position for the home leg of the tie. And I think the players enjoyed traveling to Serbia and playing in front of a crowd of 7500, a bigger audience than most of them have ever had at one of their matches.

Jagodina will travel to Luxembourg for the second leg in a week.


Jagodina is a beautiful city of about 75,000. Its name comes from the Serbian word for "strawberry."

[Greyfriars Bobby]

Originally Posted by bbgunn

Sorry I can't give any advice about the contracts, but you are lucky to be able to sign your whole cast!

No problem. Once I added up the totals, I realized I could swing it. Nobody's demands were outrageous; I figured I might have to open the vault to keep a couple of the young stars in the side, or to meet the demands of a guy like Jeremy Laroche for one last big paycheck.

Most of the Rosport guys, even the ones who are stars at this level, have weaknesses. I think that's what keeps them from drawing the attention of big clubs outside Luxembourg.

It also appears that the youngsters I didn't offer contracts have decided to stick around, at least for now. Gregory Molitor is the only guy who left, going back to the Promotion Division with Diekirch.

Thanks for checking in and commenting.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

11 July 2013
EURO Cup, First Qualifying Round
Stade Josy Barthel

Rosport 2-0 Jagodina
Rosport win, 2-1 on aggregate

GK: Oster
D: Scholer, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
M: Rakic, Jans, Battaglia, Ferreira
ST: Schiltz, Laroche

Maybe it was the result of traveling all the way from Serbia, but Jagodina's players were showing signs of fatigue from the opening whistle. When I realized their fitness levels were in the 70s (our guys were in the 80s), I decided to adopt a more aggressive mentality. That meant switching from Contain to Standard, but I didn't want to pull out too many stops. Jagodina are a more talented side, after all, with a better player at every position than we have, except for one.

That one is center back Kevin Maiget, and he played superbly. He won Man of the Match (8.4), and he deserved it.

Our goals both came in the first half, a crisp finish from Jeremy Laroche off an Andy Rakic cross, and a Laroche-to-Schiltz move in the area that Laurent tucked past their keeper.

Schiltz' goal put us up 2-1 on aggregate, and we needed to make sure Jagodina didn't score again. If they did, they would go through, since they scored an away goal. On 74', I subbed Christophe Pazos and Yannick Loose for Rakic and Laroche, dropped Battaglia back to DMC, and awaited Jagodina's assault. I guess they were simply too tuckered out to attack too ferociously, and we left the pitch with a 2-0 victory and a berth in the Second Qualifying Round.

Our opponent will be Jablonec, from the Czech First Division. Again, we'll face a much more highly-respected club; they have a three-star reputation, and we merit half a star. The supporters are delighted that we've gone this far, and we've banked a cool €100,000 for our efforts so far. The board can't be too unhappy about that.

With European football to think about, I've let my assistant, Pit Theis, handle the friendlies. More on those later.


Our EURO Cup match was moved to Stade Josy Barthel, because Victoriarena didn't meet the capacity guidelines for this competition.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

18 July 2013
EURO Cup, Second Qualifying Round
Stade Josy Barthel

Rosport 2-1 Jablonec

GK: Oster
D: Scholer, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
M: Rakic, Jans, Battaglia, Ferreira
ST: Laroche, Schiltz

Jablonec are an even better side than Jagodin. Both clubs have three-star reputations, but Jablonec entered the EURO Cup in the second round, rather than having to advance to it with a win.

The only club in the Czech Republic with a clearly superior reputation is Sparta Prague. Jablonec are worth €4,000,000; we're worth €375,000. But, today, we proved we belonged on the same pitch with them.

They took the lead through David Kuchynka on 38' and carried it into halftime. We weren't playing badly at all.

On 70', Andy Rakic was fouled in the area, and the referee pointed to the spot. Jeremy Laroche stepped up to take it; the keeper guessed which way Jeremy would shoot, but Jeremy put it just out of his reach. We'd drawn even, and the crowd of 2,997 at Stade Josy Barthel roared their appreciation.

Once again, the hero was Kevin Maiget. His diving header off a Ferreira corner put us ahead on 86', and we held on for the win. We'll take a 2-1 lead to Jablonec for the second leg.

I've seen referees let much harder fouls than the one on Rakic go unpunished, and I'm sure Jablonec feels like they were jobbed.

There's no way we're a better side than Jablonec.

But, tonight, we were.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

23 July 2013

I wonder sometimes if there is something about the football culture of Luxembourg that stands in the way of the development of wide midfielders.

Our MR, Carlos Ferreira, has been superb...but he was born in Lisbon and is a naturalized Luxembourger. Our ML, Andy Rakic, is an Aussie, and he's still almost 700 days away from gaining Luxembourg nationality.

The Luxembourg national side plays their captain, Kim Kintzinger, at MR or AMR. He's a natural right back. Steve Bettmer, who plays ML/AML, is a natural defensive midfielder.

Andy Rakic can be a challenge to manage. His Stamina is so low (4) that he's unable to play a full match without getting fatigued and, despite the fact I'm listed as a Favorite Personnel, he reacts negatively to my comments more than the entire rest of the club put together. If my options for a private chat with him included "Man up," I would definitely send him that message.

Andy is 32, so he's on the down-side of his career, and I'd like to bring a younger player in so I can make use of what talent Andy still has as a backup. I found two very good options and, like Ferreira and Rakic, they're both from somewhere other than Luxembourg.

Morgan Betorangal, age 24, is from the African nation of Chad. He's played in Luxembourg since 2010, spending time with Union 05 and Dudelange. Last year, he got into 19 matches with Dudelange, scoring 4 goals, but he didn't seem to be part of their plans. I can't figure out why, because the man can play. He made his debut as a Chad international last season, and has appeared for his country five times. Betorangal is comfortable playing anywhere along the left side of the pitch.

Mickaël Leoni is a Frenchman, the same age as Betorangal, and he's also played for two Luxembourger clubs--Jeunesse Esch and Hamm Benfica. He was released from Hamm Benfica on a free on 30 June, and several clubs in Belgium and Luxembourg began to court him. Mickaël is most comfortable playing AMC, but he's comfortable on the left wing and at AML.

I could see how both Morgan and Mickaël could fit into the Rosport club's plans. They're similar players; as you might expect, Morgan is more sound defensively and Mickaël is more dynamic offensively. They can both fill several roles, and they're both young.

Both men have a sense of their worth as footballers, and their salary demands were high, by our standards. I've got some cash to spend, however, and it's not like players from all over Europe are lining up to come to a little-known club in Luxembourg. Leoni requested €10,000, and Betorangal asked for over €13,000. A little back-and-forth resulted, and both players backed off their initial requests.

I would have been happy with either player, but now I have both of them. Leoni signed for €9,250, and Betorangal for €12,250.

Mickaël and Morgan provide us with a little more tactical flexibility. A 4-4-2 diamond will work better now, with Mickaël at AMC and Morgan on the right wing. Or, we can run the formation Luxembourg uses: four in back, with two central midfielders, attacking midfielders on both sides, and two strikers on top. Ferreira likes to play AMR, and Leoni would fit well at AML.

Neither Betorangal or Leoni are eligible for the second leg of our EURO Cup tie, so they'll make their Rosport debuts when the National Division season begins next month.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

25 July 2013
EURO Cup, Second Qualifying Round

Jablonec 5-0 Rosport

GK: Oster
D: Scholer, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
M: Rakic, Leweck, Battaglia, Ferreira
ST: Laroche, Schiltz

Sorry, Cinderella. The ball is over, and it's back to reality.

Back on their own grounds, Jablonec's class showed. Their second goal was the clearest demonstration of the true difference between their side and ours. Jan Dembinny streaked up the wing with the ball, blowing past Christophe Scholer like he was wearing clown shoes. Dembinny crossed it to Marek Sustr, who flicked his foot and put it under Jeff Oster's outstretched arms for a goal.

The match could probably have been closer than it was, because after Sustr's goal made the score 2-0, Jablonek took the lead, due to their away goal in the first leg. I went on the attack, hoping we could pull one back, but instead Sustr scored again. Even after we switched to a more defensive mentality, Jablonek kept the goals coming. Sustr had a hat trick.

Thomas Battaglia (7.4) played well in a losing effort. Scholer (4.9) got wrecked. Maiget (6.4) was the best of our defenders.

Still, our first experience in European play was a lot of fun. While most players in the National Division were playing friendlies with other Luxembourger clubs in front of 50 people, we faced famous clubs from Eastern Europe before audiences of several thousand.

(Dudelange were put out of the Second Qualifying Round, too, losing 8-4 in aggregate to FC Steaua Bucharest.)

Now, the National Division season will begin. Want a shot at a big payoff? Put a couple euros down on Rosport to win the league. Sky Bet has the odds of a Rosport victory at 2000-1. "The bookmakers appear convinced that your team lacks the quality to mount any sort of title challenge in your first season up and that you would do well to stay in the division."

[Greyfriars Bobby]

3 August 2013

Jeunesse Esch 3-4 Rosport

GK: Oster
D: Betorangal, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
M: Leoni, Jans, Battaglia, Ferreira
ST: Bozic, Schiltz

Our first National Division match was far from a defensive struggle. Jeunesse Esch took a 2-0 lead, through Wang Chu, who is quite possibly the only Chinese-Luxembourger player in the world, and Oselas, their venerable Brazilian striker. Oselas is 41, and his goal was his 100th for Jeunesse Esch. We were faced with the task of coming back from a two-goal deficit without Jeremy Laroche, who was out with a bad cold.

Laroche's replacement, Anton Bozic, pulled one back early in the second half. Kevin Maiget, who played most of the game with some kind of knock that nobody saw until his condition dropped to 50%, headed home a corner to equalize at 67'.

Several minutes later, we replaced a weary Laurent Jans with Alphonse Leweck. He quickly made his presence felt. Tom Siebenaler played a long ball ahead of Bozic, and their keeper, came out to intercept it. He tried to clear it from danger, but Leweck got to it first, about halfway between the top of the box and the midline. Alphonse let it bounce and hit it on the half-volley, straight into the unguarded goal.

This time it was Jeunesse Esch's turn to equalize, and they did, with a goal by Damien Miceli. It looked like we'd leave Esch with a draw until 87', when Billy Bernard, playing with a gashed leg, fed Leweck inside the area. Leweck tucked the ball between the keeper and the right post for the game-winner. Needless to say, Alphonse was the Man of the Match. Coming off the bench to score twice in ten minutes will do it.

Jeunesse Esch was the National Division champion last season, and they were the oddsmakers' pick to win it again this year. Bringing home three points from their grounds was big. I'd prefer not to let in three goals--that's eight we've conceded in our last two matches. And, since we learned Bernard is hurt badly enough to miss the next two or three weeks, tightening up our defense won't be easy.

The full name of today's opponent is AS La Jeunesse d'Esch Alzette. Founded in 1907, they are one of Luxembourg's two oldest clubs, and they are the most successful, with 29 National Division titles.


Esch-sur-Alzette is the second largest city in Luxembourg.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

5 August 2013

Now that we're up in the National Division, my house rule about not signing players away from clubs in our division is no longer in effect. Other National Division clubs are courting our players--Christophe Pazos, in particular.

I'd been frustrated by the fact that I couldn't get any coaches to sign with our club. The board is allowing us to build a bigger coaching staff, and there are a number of backroom staff candidates without jobs in Luxembourg right now. They've been out of work for over a year; I know, because I've been trying to sign them that long. None of them are willing to discuss a contract. Apparently they prefer being unemployed. Are they waiting for Bayern Munich to sweep them off their feet? Ain't happening, boys.

This week I remembered that Rumelange has a player with coaching attributes--Marcin Siebert, the elder Bash Brother! I made an offer of $2000 for the transfer, and Rumelange accepted it. Today, Marcin Siebert became player-coach for Rosport.

Siebert is 27, and he's a decent center bacl, but he plays a position where we're especially strong. He's here for his coaching talents, which are already very good by our league's standards. Marcin is Polish, but he also speaks English, Letzburgesch, and French. We're paying him a coach's salary, too. He'll earn €13,750 a year.

Now I'm tempted to see if we can get his younger brother Mateusz, too.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

12 August 2013

Rosport 4-1 Rumelange

GK: Oster
D: Lickes, Siebenaler, Maiget, Babacic
M: Betorangal, Pazos, Battaglia, Ferreira
ST: Laroche, Schiltz

We didn't have much trouble with Rumelange, another of the three clubs that moved up to the National Division this season.

I decided to welcome Marcin Siebert to the club by allowing him to pick the side that would face his former team (and his younger brother) today. Marcin likes Olivier Lickes a lot, so he got the start at left back. Almin Babacic played in Bernard's spot on the right.

This might have been Christophe Pazos' last match in Rosport. He was born in Spain, and several Spanish clubs are trying to sign him. I'd listen to the right offer, but I don't want to let Christophe go for nothing. He says he's happy with Rosport, at least for now.

Jeremy Laroche is over his cold, as demonstrated by his brace of goals tonight. On the second one, two Rumelange defenders closed down on Laurent Schiltz, leaving Laroche completely unmarked. Laurent got him the ball, and in that situation, Jeremy is going to score.

Morgan Betorangal made his first notable contribution to Rosport football tonight. He played a beautiful, low cross to Schiltz, who scored one of the easiest goals he'll get all year...thanks to the quality of Betorangal's cross.

Kevin Maiget set up the fourth goal by heading the ball to Laurent Jans, who slotted it in from just inside the six-yard box.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

16 August 2013

This week, Kevin Hartert went to the media, complaining about not getting first team football. Let's see, Kevin. You're 34, and you're not as talented as our other goalkeeper, who is 23. You signed your contract under the expectation you'd be the backup. What about this picture is hard to figure out?

Hartert wanted to leave, so I obliged him, at the cost of €1000.

Now I'm looking for another keeper. He doesn't have to be a superstar, since I'm satisfied with Jeff Oster. A guy who is good enough to fill in when Jeff needs a rest, or if he's away on international duty, will be fine. There are some good young keepers in Germany, Belgium, and France whose clubs want to loan them out; if one of them will come to Rosport, I'd let him split time with Oster.

Laurent Jans, Kevin Maiget, and Morgan Betorangal all turned out for their national teams this week. Laurent and the Luxembourg U21 side drew with Hong Kong, 1-1. Kevin came on as a sub in Luxembourg's 4-1 victory over Chinese Taipei at Stade Josy Barthel, and he played well (7.0) rating. Morgan was in excellent form for Chad in their 5-1 romp over South Sudan, laying on two goals and finishing with a 9.0 rating.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

17 August 2013

FC Racing 2-2 Rosport

GK: Derix
D: Scholer, Siebenaler, Maiget, Heinz
DMC: Battaglia
M: Betorangal, Ferreira
AMC: Leoni
ST: Laroche, Schiltz

A different look tonight, with a 4-4-2 Diamond formation and a new man between the posts.

Yannick Derix comes to us on loan from the Dutch club MVV Maastricht. He's 22, stands 6'4", and he's considered one of his club's best young players.

Honestly, Derix is a lot better player than I thought I would be able to find. He commands his area exceptionally well, communicates effectively with his defenders, and has the reflexes of a cat. We're paying half his salary, which comes to €6,250, but I think he'll be worth the money.

His debut with Rosport will be one to forget, however. With the score level, 1-1, in the 86th minute, poor Yannick went up to intercept a cross...and knocked it into his own goal.

Fortunately Jeremy Laroche, wearing the captain's armband tonight, took his goalkeeper off the hook somewhat by scoring on a ferocious strike--into the top left corner from 20 yards--a minute into stoppage time.

Tim Heinz, who is usually a central defender, played well at right back tonight.

Last year, we conceded four goals to Racing in a friendly. We've come a very long way since then.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

25 August 2013

Differdange 0-1 Rosport

GK: Derix
D: Scholer, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
M: Betorangal, Bastos, Jans, Ferreira
ST: Schiltz, Laroche

Hey, we're on TV!

We were featured on the Sunday night match on Luxembourger television for the first time this week. It wasn't a classic exhibition of the beautiful game, but at least the nation got to see us pull out an away victory against a high-profile club.

Yes, there's a new man in the Rosport eleven this week. On Monday, Marcin Siebert recommended I check out André Bastos, a midfielder with Hamm Benfica that he really liked. I liked him, too, so I decided to see what kind of salary might entice him to change clubs. Bastos wasn't happy at Hamm Benfica--he wasn't getting much playing time--so he was ready for a change. Hamm Benfica accepted our free transfer offer, and we signed him for a VERY economical €2,200 contract.

André plays best at DMC, but he's competent as a midfielder or attacking midfielder in the middle or the left side. He is in absolutely horrific shape--his Natural Fitness is 3--but he can work wonders with a football. His passing, dribbling, crossing, and technique are all above average for our league, and his mental attributes are solid, too. At 22, he fits well with my determination to build a core of solid young players at the club.

In the back of my mind, signing Bastos feels like taking out an insurance policy against losing Christophe Pazos, who continues to be courted by Spanish clubs. Real Sociedad want him for their "B" squad, as do Celta and Tanarife. They aren't offering any money, and I'm sure not going to give him away for nothing--not as long as Christophe wants to stay, and so far, he does.

Bastos announced his arrival in Rosport with the game-winning score.

After Yannick Derix's frightful debut last week, I thought another go might help him with his confidence. Derix thanked me with a clean sheet.

This is the last week of the summer transfer window, and while we have no urgent needs, I won't rule out the possibility of a deal...but only if it's the right one.


Evening in Differdange. The streets are empty because everyone is at home, watching the Differdange-Rosport match on TV.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

31 August 2013

We play Fola Esch at Victoriarena tonight, and it's been a busier-than-expected last few days on the transfer market...complete with a big surprise or two.

Arrival: We had one remaining spot that I thought was a little bit soft, by National Division standards. On paper, Christophe Scholer ought to be just fine at left back, but on the pitch, he's been struggling all season long. We had a 23-year-old D(L) named Mehdi Kirch on our shortlist; he's been with Jeunesse Esch for two years after playing in his native France and in Belgium. We brought him in at a salary of €4,750. Not bad for a guy who rates 4.0 stars from all three of our staff members.

Kirch reminds me somewhat of a terrier: small, tough, and hard-working. I like the fact that he can play several positions capably, and his attributes are solid across the board.

Departures: The first order of business was to tell Laurent Pellegrino not to let the door hit him in the butt on the way out. The team's elder statesman at age 40, he'd been behaving like a punk all summer. His outburst at our season-opening team meeting, when he called Laurent Schiltz's words of inspiration "rubbish," cost him the vice-captaincy. So, when Hamm Benfica inquired about a free transfer, I decided to let him go. We don't need a crabby geezer around the place, especially if he's not talented enough to push Billy Bernard or Kevin Maiget off our defense.

The other goodbye was not nearly as welcome. The day before the transfer window closed, Anton Bozic asked to be put on the transfer list. I guess I could have seen it coming, since he wasn't playing regularly enough for his liking; Laurent Schiltz and Jeremy Laroche are tough to put on the bench. I obliged Anton--he didn't want to stay anyway--and, fortunately, he didn't sign with a National Division rival. He's now with Avenir Beggen, from the Promotion Division.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

31 August 2013

Rosport 3-1 Fola Esch

GK: Oster
D: Kirch, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
M: Betorangal, Pazos, Bastos, Ferreira
ST: Schiltz, Laroche

We took the lead through Schiltz's goal, but Fola Esch's Ronny equalized before the half. Two goals from Laroche within four minutes, right around the hour mark, put us ahead.

When we're leading late in the game, I've started removing a striker and bringing in a fifth defender, usually Yannick Loose. It's worked well, so I'll stick with it. I use Alphonse Leweck as my offensive sparkplug when we're behind.

We and Kaerjeng have the same record so far: four wins, a draw, and a loss. They are ahead of us on goal differential, +8 to +7. They're also our next opponent, at Victoriarena in two weeks.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

14 September 2013

Rosport 1-1 Kaerjeng

I tried something different today. I don't know whether it was a good idea or not.

I was looking at our team report and I noticed that our strikers are actually the weakest area of our side! Jeremy Laroche (age 33 in October) is retaining his skills fairly well, and he's getting even better technically. However, Laurent Schiltz (age 31) is starting to show some real signs of age.

Meanwhile, we have a young star, Mickael Leoni, who is a four-star player at AMC. There's no AMC in our flat 4-4-2. Christophe Pazos rates four stars at MC. There aren't MCs in our 4-4-2 diamond. So I did some tinkering, and came up with this set-up for tonight's match:

GK: Derix
D: Kirch, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
CM: Pazos, Jans
AM: Betorangal, Leoni, Ferreira
ST: Laroche

Ferreira, who is even more comfortable at AMR than he is at MR, scored our goal, pouncing on a fluffed clearing attempt by a Kaerjeng center back and punching it past their keeper. They equalized at 60' through Cherif Abdelkadous, their own veteran striker.

The draw kept Kaerjeng top of the table, by the same one-goal differential they had over us going in.

I'm probably going to give the 4-2-3-1 another try.

Our young goalkeeper, Yannick Derix, is enjoying his time in Rosport. He seems to especially appreciate being able to talk to Jeff Oster. He has to use his third language (German) to communicate with his teammates, and his left back, Mehdi Kirch, doesn't speak German. Maybe Yannick can learn some Letzburgesch.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

21 September 2013

Rosport 4-0 Eztella Etterbruck

4-2-3-1 Asymmetric
GK: Oster
D: Kirch, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
M: Battaglia, Betorangal, Jans, Ferreira, Leoni
ST: Laroche

I'm not sure how much I can read into a result like this one against Eztella Etterbruck, an 11th place club, but I was pleased with the way we played in this formation. We took 19 shots to their 6, and had possession 62% of the time.

Jeremy Laroche, for one, will hope we try this one again. He struck for a hat trick, which gives him 8 goals in league play--best in the National Division. In 23 league and cup matches with us, Jeremy has scored 23 times.

Laurent Jans got the other goal for us, his first in a Rosport shirt.

Billy Bernard (8.3) was the best of our defenders, although they all played well. Morgan Betorangal provided a beautiful assist, and so did Carlos Ferreira.

Next week comes a tougher test: away to Dudelange, one of the powerhouses of the National Division.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

28 September 2013

Dudelange 1-1 Rosport

Flat 4-4-2
GK: Derix
D: Kirch, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
M: Betorangal, Jans, Pazos, Ferreira
ST: Schiltz, Laroche

We last faced Dudelange in the finals of the Luxembourg Cup last spring, and we beat them, 1-0. This time, at their grounds, we drew, and it was as even a match as the scoreline would indicate.

We weren't as active offensively as we were in the last match, but I think that had more to do with the opposition than our formation.

Joel Kitenge scored for them at 37', and Laurent Schiltz equalized at 59'. Both goals were more the result of errors by defenders than anything else. Schiltz's goal went in off the crossbar, and Kitenge's "strike" looked like Uncle Bill kicking off his slipper.

Joel Pedro, their good young midfielder, drew a second red card and was sent off on 83', but it was too late for us to take much advantage of the situation.

I've been rotating Yannick Derix and Jeff Oster in goal, and it seems like poor Yannick keeps drawing the tougher opponents. Our next two fixtures are both good sides--Swift Hesparange (5th) and Petange (3rd). We play Swift on our grounds, so I might give Derix that start and use Oster away to Petange.

This result, combined with Petange's 0-1 loss to Differdange, put Dudelange in second, one point (17) behind us (18).

[Greyfriars Bobby]

1 October 2013

We got a tough break yesterday, literally and figuratively. I had just been thinking about getting striker Alex Pott into the lineup this week. Attribute-wise, he's nearly a dead ringer for Laurent Schiltz now and, at 24, he's almost seven years younger.

Yesterday Pott fractured his wrist in training, and he'll be shelved until sometime in November.

He's got company on the injury list, too. Laurent Jans strained a groin and will be unavailable for 4-5 weeks, too. He had really started to assert himself in the middle of the pitch. I'll fill his slot with a combination of players: Andre Bastos, Alphonse Leweck, maybe Thomas Battaglia.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

5 October 2013

Rosport 1-2 Swift Hesperange

Flat 4-4-2
GK: Derix
D: Kirch, Heinz, Maiget, Bernard
M: Betorangal, Battaglia, Pazos, Ferreira
ST: Laroche, Schiltz

We lost our first league match of the season, as Swift scored in stoppage time. We outplayed them in every sense, except in the one that makes the difference.

Our goal came through Jeremy Laroche, at the end of a tic-tac-toe passing sequence with Billy Bernard and Carlos Ferreira.

Tim Heinz started in Tom Siebenaler's usual spot, more because I wanted Heinz to get some playing time than because of a lack of form or fitness on Siebenaler's part. Tim played well; his 7.0 rating was the highest among our back four.

This one's not on Yannick Derix, either. He was solid, and both their goals were good ones.

We missed Laurent Jans and his ability to dictate the play as a deep-lying playmaker. Without him, we seemed less fluid most of the evening.

I probably should have kept us in an Attacking strategy longer. We looked good when we had that offensive mind-set, and I backed off to Control after we went up 1-0. For some reason, we don't seem to play well with a Control strategy, and I'm not sure why that is.

Dudelange are top now, with 20 points in 9 matches. We and Petange are next with 18, and we are ahead by one in goal differential, +10 to +9.

The three-week break in the league programme is coming up, but we'll almost certainly have a Luxembourg Cup tie in the meantime.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

7 October 2013

Our latest Mr. Crabby Pants is Arlindo Neves Cunha. Coach Mike Hoffman told me about a chat he had with ANC about playing time. It seems that he thinks he's good enough for first team football.

I brought him in to talk, and he was snarky from the beginning. Come on, Arlindo. You aren't scoring for the Reserve side. Sure, you did have that hat trick last spring, but that came against a weak side in the Promotion Division. You're sixth on our depth chart at striker, behind Laroche, Schiltz, Pott, Saboga, and Codello. The 15-year-old, Yves Baumert, is showing loads of potential. You're not getting first team football here, my friend.

Nothing I said seemed to satisfy him, so I swallowed the €500 it took to release him and sent him on his way, rather than allow his unhappiness to spread through the changing room.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

26 October 2013

Petange 2-2 Rosport

4-4-2 Diamond

GK: Oster
D: Kirch, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
DMC: Binsfeld
M: Betorangal, Ferreira
AMC: Leoni
ST: Laroche, Schiltz

Unlike most of the malcontents who come to me saying they are good enough for first team football, Marc Binsfeld has a decent argument. I told him I'd give him a chance, and this week's fixture was the perfect opportunity. Petange looked like a side who might be a little perplexed by a 4-4-2 Diamond, and Binsfeld is a natural DMC.

Marc thanked me for the opportunity by (1) making a howler of a mistake, letting Petange's Marc Nissan go unmarked and shoot on Oster from inside the six-yard box and (2) drawing two yellow cards in the span of 19 minutes--even after I dialed back his tackling intensity--and being sent off the pitch. We played a man down for 59 minutes against a very good side, on their grounds, and came away with a 2-2 draw. I'll take that.

Our first goal was a gift. Billy Bernard hit a cross from the right side and it went into the goal, which surprised everyone on the pitch. Our other goal was pretty nifty, too--a powerful 20-yard strike by Laurent Schiltz into to the bottom left corner of the net, past a diving Petange goalkeeper.

The draw kept us even with Petange, and we remain two points behind Dudelange in the National Division. Dudelange drew with Swift Hesperange this weekend.

As the holders of the Luxembourg Cup, we drew a bye in the First Round. Our opponent in the Second Round is Racing FC. Really, FLF?


Petange, like many of the towns we visit in the National Division, is on the outskirts of Luxembourg City.

In the last two weeks, Kevin Maiget has earned two more caps, starting for Luxembourg at center back in World Cup qualifying matches against Russia and Northern Ireland. Luxembourg lost both, 2-4 to Russia and 1-4 to Northern Ireland.

Morgan Betorangal has had more success with the Chad national team. They defeated Seychelles, 4-1, with Morgan collecting an assist. He has a goal and four assists in six international matches this year.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

31 October 2013

Marc Binsfeld requested a transfer today, claiming I didn't keep my promise to give him more first team football...after I had him in my starting eleven just last week.

I decided to give him what he wants; I transfer listed him with an asking price of €500. We'll see if anyone is interested.

Meanwhile, our physio reports that Mickael Leoni is suffering from a hernia and will be out until Christmas, more or less.

Our midfield situation has gotten much more interesting in a hurry! Fortunately, Laurent Jans is back at training, and he should be ready to play this week.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

18 November 2013

Sometimes a break can be good for a club. This one was not good for us at all.

Kevin Maiget played for Luxembourg in an 0-5 loss to Ukraine. Over 8,000 Luxembourgers saw him struggle through 61 minutes of lousy football before he was substituted. He finished with a 5.2 rating.

Mehdi Kirch and Jeremy Laroche had it worse, however. They both got hurt in training this week. Kirch twisted his ankle badly, and he'll be out for 7-8 weeks.
Laroche strained a calf muscle, which will sideline him for about a month.

Needless to say, neither will be available for our Cup match against Racing FC next week.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

24 November 2013
Luxembourg Cup, Second Round

Rosport 2-1 Racing FC

4-2-3-1 Asymmetric
GK: Oster
D: Scholer, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
M: Battaglia, Pazos, Betorangal, Ferreira, Leweck
ST: Schiltz

With Jeremy Laroche on the injured list and Alex Pott still not ready for action, I thought the 4-2-3-1 was the best bet for today. A nice score by Tom Siebenaler off a corner and a precise strike from Laurent Schiltz, along with a strong performance by our back line and Jeff Oster in goal, put us through to the Third Round.

It was a costly victory, however, because of a startling lack of discipline. Carlos Ferreira was booked on 73', and before my instructions to him to take it easy could take effect, he committed a stupid foul and drew another card.

We conceded one goal after that, but we held on as time ran out.

Unfortunately, Ferreira will be banned for one match, at least. He'll be unavailable when we face Hamm Benfica on Wednesday.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

27 November 2013

RC Hamm Benfica 4-2 Rosport

4-2-3-1 Asymmetric
GK: Derix
D: Scholer, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
M: Bastos, Jans, Betorangal, Pazos, Leweck
ST: Schiltz

This had all the makings of a very troublesome fixture. We were playing on short rest; our starting left back and our star striker were both injured; our playmaker was suspended; we're away from our own grounds. I'm honestly not too surprised we lost this one.

Defensive midfielder Andre Bastos went off with an injury in the first half, so I brought on Marc Binsfeld. He didn't give me any reason to think he should play more than he's been playing.

By halftime we were down 3-0. I gave my angriest team talk yet, and the lads seemed to be fired up. We were doing OK with possession and we were getting shots, but they weren't good ones.

Laurent Schiltz and Christophe Pazos weren't doing anything, so I brought on Alex Pott and Roland Saboga. They seemed to light a spark under the team. Billy Bernard scored, but it was waved off; Alphonse Leweck had fouled one of their defenders. Leweck atoned for that by hammering a strike into the top left corner, and Pott converted a nice ball from Laurent Jans five minutes later. Alex's goal made it 3-2, and we were back in the match.

That's as close as we came, however, as Dimitri Kitenge scored on 88' to close the deal.

We've fallen to third now, four points behind Dudelange and one behind Differdange. We have nine days to rest and re-group before our next match.

[Greyfriars Bobby]

7 December 2013

Rosport 4-0 Progres

4-4-2
GK: Oster
D: Scholer, Siebenaler, Maiget, Bernard
M: Betorangal, Pazos, Jans, Ferreira
ST: Schiltz, Pott

This was much, much more like it!

Alex Pott's impressive performance as a substitute against Hamm Benfica earned him a spot in the starting XI tonight, and he was terrific. He had a part in three of our four goals, scoring two of them and setting up the other.

I was wondering if Laurent Schiltz was beginning to lose his game, but he was in full beast mode tonight. Both his goals were classic Schiltz. First, he escaped his mark, kept himself onside, took a feed from Pott and converted from inside the six-yard box. Then, he received a cross from Morgan Betorangal and ripped one past the keeper from 17 yards.

We were exceptionally good on defense, too. Progres managed only 4 shots against us (we had 12). Jeff Oster had his first clean sheet since September, and Billy Bernard (8.4) and Tom Siebenaler (7.9) both played excellent football.

Both our strikers earned a 9.4 rating, and Pott was Man of the Match.

I've begun to talk to some of our young core players about contracts for next season. When I get some news, I'll pass it along.