Hi there!
I know it’s unusual for 2 posts from 1 blogger in a day on this site, but my previous post was supposed to be put up last night so this is how I’ve ended up doing things for today. Anyway, hopefully you guys will see 2 posts from me as a bonus! :)
First of all here’s a look at how my entire squad matches up with one another…
As you can see the situation is not that bad. Most of our players are 3 stars and above with the exception of Dawson and a couple of the younger players. Morale wasn’t great before the friendlies but hopefully what follows will improve our morale. As for the youth system, well, that’s a whole different story…
Okay…this has to be the worst youth team I’ve ever had at my disposal. Needless to say I’ve released every single one of them bar 2 who might have a tiny bid of potential but will probably go at the end of the season.
Because of this situation I decided to have a conversation with my board, if you remember they weren’t too keen to splash the cash when it came to giving me transfer budgets and wages so I was very surprised at how this conversation about the youth system went…
Well that was surprisingly easy! But then again, if they’d refused I might have resorted bringing in some youth players and asking them to do some kick ups, and watched the boards face when they turned to me and said, ‘Err, what’s a kick up?’.
Now, let’s move onto who left the club and who joined…
Transfers Out — Not including my entire youth academy
I managed to pull £1.2million into the club, all from selling Richard Garcia to Leicester. The other 2 players are young and might have some potential so we’ll see how they do at a lower level first. Now onto who joined…
3 players joined replacing those who left. I think I did quite well to sign £2.4million pounds worth of players from a £400K transfer budget. I managed to persuade the board to sign Lewis from Peterborough which begs the question, why didn’t they just give me £2milliion to spend! Atila Turan is on loan as backup for Dawson and Horava is a promising young midfielder, so here they are…
Atila Turan — Left Back
A good acquisition for Hull and should do the business as a first teamer should he be needed. No better than Dawson in star ratings but his pace gives him an extra element, they can both be rotated to bring different things to my tactic.
Tomas Horava — Central Midfielder
Surely a bargain at the low price of £250K. Keep in mind that this guy is only 22 and has bags of potential. His attacking skills along with his technique and flair will make him a brilliant player in this division. He now joins a potent midfield of Corry Evans, Robert Koren, Tom Cairney, Nicky Barmby, and Belaid.
Joe Lewis — Goalkeeper
I know I had Mannone but he seemed to lack the agility and reflexes to be a reliable goalkeeper so I persuaded the board to invest in Lewis. A proven keeper on FM and hopefully he will be the difference between defeats and victories.
I’d like to say before I put the friendlies up that none of these players featured during my friendlies. I was a long hard summer in the transfer market which involved being beaten to targets by bigger teams and when offers did get accepted the players often turned their noses up. So, without further ado, here’s how pre-season went…
Pre-Season Fixtures
We started off with a defeat against Roda JC which was so bad that I scrapped my tactics after 1 match and created a new bunch. Then things picked up, partly because of weaker opposition but also my team showed a much better understanding of my new tactics.
Roda JC — Friendly
This was supposed to be a draw and instead turned into total route by Roda. Don’t let the score fool you, we were 2nd best and weren’t helped by Rosenior getting himself sent off in the 6th minute. Roda did go to sleep at 3-0 and allowed us to nab 2 goals back but it was a nightmare to watch.
Walsall — Friendly
And this is how we ended our friendlies, the new tactics created free flowing, attacking football, eat your heart out Kevin Keegan. We seem to pin teams back and especially weaker opposition tend to just fold under the pressure and even score quite a few own goals. However, highlighted against Tranmere and Boston, we’re quite prone to being hit on the break, but when you’re 3 or 4-0 up, that doesn’t matter.
So you’re probably wondering what is this supposedly amazing attacking tactic? Well It’s not as ambitious or creative as my Rangers tactic but maybe that’s a good thing, so here it is:
Hull City 4-3-3
Very attacking front line, but my view is, ‘well that’s kind of what they’re there for!’. I never have a striker playing anything other than attacking because what’s the point, he’s a striker, let him score goals! As for midfield I tried to strike a balance so I’ve created a supporting, defensive, attacking 3 in the centre. 2 advanced playmakers (one attacking, one supporting) either side of a defensive central midfielder. The back line is pretty standard, supporting full backs, with 2 central defenders on defend duty. Goalkeeper is simply a keeper (I don’t trust the sweeper keeper role, plus it’s hard to find sweeper keepers).
Well that’s all for now! My next post will be on August-November and hopefully it’ll be a positive post!
Thanks for reading!
Darren Smith
16 августа, 2011 at 20:14
A productive pre-season mate and great signings. Joe Lewis is my favourite and should serve you well for years to come. Good luck.
Dan
16 августа, 2011 at 20:37
Thanks mate. Joe Lewis is my best signing by a mile but I’ve got to say I’m most excited about Horava. Hopefully they’ll work in an opposite fashion with Lewis denying plenty of chances while Horava creates plenty!
vaibhavc
16 августа, 2011 at 20:48
Hey Dan
Joe Lewis is a very good goalkeeper and he will do well for you. Good pre-season after changing your tactics. Good luck!
Dan
17 августа, 2011 at 12:30
The tactics change was definitely needed, I was on the verge of tears watching my team against Roda JC, they couldn’t pass, shoot, tackle, or do anything!
Kevin
16 августа, 2011 at 21:56
Hi Dan
Good pre season results and some very nice signings as well. Turan looks well worth the loan fee. Best of luck for the new season.
Dan
17 августа, 2011 at 12:31
Hi Kevin,
I hope Turan will be worth the loan fee, I’ve had him for Liverpool in the Premier League before and he did a decent job there so he should be in his element in the Championship!
Laxeyman
16 августа, 2011 at 22:32
3 good players brought in Dan, Lewis is a quality keeper and I’m sure he’ll do well for you, and the other 2 are solid and should serve you well too. Your tactic is very attacking, which is just how I like them, trying to outscore the opposition is a great philosphy, because even if you lose at least its entertaining! Anyway, good luck for the season mate!
Dan
17 августа, 2011 at 12:33
Hey laxeyman,
I’m pleased with my signings too, Horava I’d never heard of before until one of my scouts brought a report back on him, he has 4 star potential so could even play in the Premier League. I always find that offence is the best defence plus it’s a lot less nerve racking to see your team attacking constantly instead of being pinned back and defending for their lives.
Sears
17 августа, 2011 at 01:42
Good luck with this Dan!
Dan
17 августа, 2011 at 12:33
Cheers Sears!
Nicholas Phipps
17 августа, 2011 at 09:29
Good signings and Lewis has got to be a bargain! Nice friendlies as well and kudos to you for trying to play nice, attacking forward. The all striker attacking decision is interesting as I personally find that the strikers are isolated. Good luck :)
Dan
17 августа, 2011 at 12:35
Hey Nicholas,
Glad you like the tactics, I’ve avoided isolating my strikers by making one of them (Fryatt) a trequartista so he drops into space between the midfield and front line, plus Koren has an attacking role so he also moves forward a lot.
Sibo
17 августа, 2011 at 10:03
Very productive, the signings all look good and the tactic seems to be working well. Good luck with the new season and make sure you get an extra big win against Scumthorpe for me! :D
Dan
17 августа, 2011 at 12:36
Will do Sibo, you never know, if I get promoted I may be able to add Milevskyi into my squad too! :)
Sibo
17 августа, 2011 at 12:42
Yes…I was going to start harassing you about that if you got promoted! :D
Johnny Karp
17 августа, 2011 at 10:37
Well done mate, Horava and Lewis are very good signings. I like your tactic as well :)
Dan
17 августа, 2011 at 12:36
Thanks Johnny,
Horava is secretly my favourite signing, I don’t know why but I’ve got a soft spot for good central midfielders, I usually sign too many of them!
vikingmarius
17 августа, 2011 at 11:23
Great pre-season mate and once you are in the prem you should get Turan permanently, cannot wait to see how you do this season :)
Dan
17 августа, 2011 at 12:39
Hey Marius,
If I get promoted I’ll definitely look to get Turan permanently, his pace stops me getting hit on the break and his attacking attributes will be good once they develop. Hopefully I will get promoted since I think the team was already capable and I think I’ve only added to it. A play-off place would do though. :)
CsAtlantis
18 августа, 2011 at 04:10
Your signings look good, Joe Lewis has great attributes, Atila Turan on loan is pretty cool too, cheap loan fee and Horava looks like he could improve further (didn’t have too much impact in the U21 euros though :P)
There are some amazing prospects in your team this time around, Koren is a Premier League level player, and Tom Cairney is going to be even better than him! Cooper, Stewart, Simpson and Cullen could all be Premier League quality in the future too
Dan
18 августа, 2011 at 15:35
Joe Lewis is quality and Turan should be a great rotation player with Dawson. Horava should be good even though he wasn’t really given a chance at the U21s.
Koren also has great attributes and Cairney has amazing potential (if I can keep him). Stewart, Cooper, and Cullen I’m unsure about, but Simpson is great!
celticman
29 августа, 2011 at 21:47
Good start to pre-season and decent transfers. I think your tactics will work fine against weaker teams but you may need a more defensive tactic for those cup games and games against the better Championship sides.