Hey guys and welcome to a special update from my FM 2011 Newcastle story. The last post included our EPL triumph, League Cup victory and incredible journey to the Champions League and FA Cup finals. All leading up to this post and two massive matches, I won’t be writing too much and have focussed this post around the two match day videos. So sit back, relax and grab a brew as we learn the outcome of Newcastle’s fight for European glory and domestic dominance.
FA Cup final — Manchester City vs Newcastle
Venue: Wembley
Attendance: 90,000
The FA Cup has offered up an easy route this season involving many lower league sides before West Ham and Arsenal. Now the Toon Army face Manchester City who have played second fiddle to us for more than 6 years. We are the obvious favourites but City have an incredible squad including Hazard, Paloschi and many more. My Manchelona will need to be in full swing and the players on top of their form. Click the link or image below to watch this full match including my commentary.
Click here to watch the FA Cup final vs Manchester City
While Man City did offer a few threats going forward, I felt in control for large parts of this match. My boys moved the ball well and the decisive blow came rather early on. The fact that we had 4 clear cut chances to City’s none demonstrates how well my defence coped. Hernandez seems to have found his feet again this season and became my personal man of the match for orchestrating from the middle. Varriale was the official man of the match, mainly due to his goal but also some dogged defending. By the way, this victory takes Newcastle above Man Utd for most FA Cups ever won with 13. :)
Match stats:
Champions League final — AC Milan vs Newcastle
Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester
Attendance: 75,797
My last hurdle to complete a clean sweep comes with AC Milan. I met the Italian giants in the Champions League final of 2016 which finished 2-1 in our favour after a late goal. Four years later and I have a much more capable side that has the ability to split open any defence. This will be required today as they don’t come any tougher than Milan. My opponents have conceded just 2 goals in this years competition from 12 games. A massive record, but then again they haven’t seen my Manchelona :) Click the link or image below to watch the full match with my commentary.
Click here to watch the full Champions League final vs AC Milan
What was I saying about Milan’s defence? Well I guess we can scrap that. :) Newcastle ripped the Italians apart at will and we never looked like losing. This match just goes to show how far we have come since the scrappy 2-1 victory four years ago. The official man of the match was Anconetani and I agree with that. The right winger was immense and involved in almost all the goals.
Before both these finals the bank balance read £282 million. Now a few weeks after the Champions League final the bank balance has risen to £310 million. Not bad at all, but I’m still angry to see all of my £30 million plus sponsorship money given away to shareholders who sit on their ass while I fund the club in the transfer market…grrrr! Only messing, we are making massive profits despite a growing wage budget and this means great Football on the pitch also. :)
Talking of the Footballing side, my unbeaten record has now stretched to 138 games. I can’t ever see us reaching 200, but its always nice to set goals I guess.
Anyway, that is all for today. Sorry for the lack of writing but I felt it may encourage more of you to watch the match videos. Next up will be pre-season and some MASSIVE, MASSIVE transfer news!! Gotta stay tuned for that guys. :) Please feel free to ask any questions below and I look forward to reading your comments.
Jay
2 августа, 2011 at 12:24
Hey Darren,
Great stuff as usual, so in total, super cups included, whats your total trophy count now?
Darren Smith
2 августа, 2011 at 19:41
Thanks Jay, well including the CWC, Super Cup and Community Shield I have won 49 trophies to date as per my profile history that I just checked.
Johnny Karp
2 августа, 2011 at 13:04
This team is officially unstoppable, I don’t think that the 200 matches unbeaten mark is unreachable! I’ll watch the videos tonight ;)
Darren Smith
2 августа, 2011 at 19:27
Thanks Johnny, I must admit I feel unbeatable at the moment but these runs do come to an end eventually…guess we’ll have to see if 200 games unbeaten is achievable.
Dan
2 августа, 2011 at 15:38
I agree with Johnny! Your team is verging on unstoppable, in fact it may already be there! Good video for the CL final and great results too. Would have watched the FA Cup video too but for some unknown reason the video won’t load on my computer, oh well, good result anyway! :)
Darren Smith
2 августа, 2011 at 19:43
Thanks Dan, we certainly seem unstoppable. I noticed the FA Cup final video not working but can’t explain it tbh. Very frustrating but at least you saw the best match.
Laxeyman
2 августа, 2011 at 17:06
Agree with Johnny and Dan, 200 unbeaten is certainly within reach Darren! Well done on another incredible season, the unstoppable machine that is your Newcastle team keep rolling on. Looking forward to the massive transfer news :)
Darren Smith
2 августа, 2011 at 19:45
Thanks Laxeyman, would be nice to reach 200. Hopefully we can continue this surreal form, but it’ll come to an end eventually. :( The transfer news is massive because of one player and the value on show.
vaibhavc
2 августа, 2011 at 17:33
Well done Darren, amazing. 200 unbeaten games is your next target hopefully. Looking forward to the transfer news, wonder what it is.
Darren Smith
2 августа, 2011 at 19:46
Thanks Vaibhav, would be nice to reach such a milestone. The transfer news is massive but we won’t give too much away just yet. :)
Matt Clark
2 августа, 2011 at 21:48
well yet another amazing season with a team on low wages great work darren
congratulations on topping the hall of fame
do you think you could make a download link for this save?
Darren Smith
2 августа, 2011 at 21:56
Thanks Matt, I must say though that the wages have escalated somewhat to over 1.2 million. This is demonstrated on the pitch though and I’m happy with the expense considering our incredible football. I will make this game available for download but only when the story is over I’m afraid.
Matt Clark
2 августа, 2011 at 22:00
thats fine darren could you show screenshots of babacar and lukaku
Darren Smith
3 августа, 2011 at 11:45
No problem mate, I’ll provide those in my next post.
vikingmarius
2 августа, 2011 at 21:57
Not what I was expecting at all, I thought you were going to have at least a 7 goal difference in each match :P but seriously well done as always
Darren Smith
3 августа, 2011 at 11:47
Thanks Viking, 7-0 would have been amazing but we aren’t quite there yet lol :)
Sears
2 августа, 2011 at 22:43
As usual your Newcastle team dominate’s and scores loads in major finals , phenomenal, mate ! That new tactic is extraordinary , :-) KUTGW !
Darren Smith
3 августа, 2011 at 11:44
Thanks mate, lets just hope the opponents don’t suss my new tactic out :) I still think a more cautious tactic is easier to use with smaller sides…but when you have the right players this tactic is untouchable.
Sayam Khan
3 августа, 2011 at 01:25
Jeez Darren… Think you need a bigger challenge now! Well done mate, excellent achievements, as usual ;-)
Darren Smith
3 августа, 2011 at 11:43
Thanks mate.
Lye
3 августа, 2011 at 02:52
Hi Darren,
Well done once again. You have convincingly beaten Man City and AC Milan. History is meant to be made. Records are meant to be broken. 200 games unbeaten, hell yeah.
Darren Smith
3 августа, 2011 at 11:42
Thanks mate, would be great to reach 200 unbeaten but we’ll see how it goes.
Nicholas Phipps
3 августа, 2011 at 07:09
great videos and results. Your team looks absolutely unstoppable and 200 games is now almost realistic :). About the transfer news, I’m guessing you sold Sanogo, but I can’t be sure ;)
Darren Smith
3 августа, 2011 at 11:42
Thanks Nick, you’ll just have to wait and see who leaves/comes in. Lets just say one first teamer is leaving and also a club legend.
Martin
3 августа, 2011 at 08:54
Hey Darren! Shock Horror…you’ve won everything again. No only joking, great to see you dominating….I think thats what every FM’er wants to achieve. Its amazing how you’ve swapped and changed your team so much over the past few seasons and yet they all pull together and go 138 games undefeated which is turely amazing. Great effort and i’m looking forward to your pre-season and your MASSIVE MASSIVE transfer news…I personally think you’ve sold the beast (yaya) but we’ll see lol :)
Darren Smith
3 августа, 2011 at 11:41
Thanks Martin, it has been a great season and while it seems like things are been changed every season there not. The spine of my team remains the same while new players entering are generally very young and get raised through the ranks before taking over from the departing oldies. Its one big cycle that means every single player is already settled at the club, knows the tactics inside out and therefore performs at their best from the off as opposed to new signings that take a season to settle…I think thats the reasoning behind my unbeaten run because I’ve never managed like this before and never had such a great run.
Kevin
3 августа, 2011 at 09:45
Hi Darren
Agree with Johnny. 200 games undefeated is not that unrealistic. Congrats on another fantastic season!!!
Darren Smith
3 августа, 2011 at 11:38
Thanks Kevin, would be amazing to reach that landmark.
FM Blogger
3 августа, 2011 at 15:42
Well done Darren! (Although I think everyone had expected you to win everything). You have created an astonishing team. I’m sure that you must have become already a legend at the club, am I right? Looking forward to your pre-season and to be honest you have made want to see which players did you get (and who you offloaded of course).
fmblogging.blogspot.com
Darren Smith
3 августа, 2011 at 18:33
Thanks mate, it doesn’t feel right to consider defeat anymore and that speaks volumes for my boys. I am a club legend and even more popular than Alan Shearer, still a few names to climb above though like Milburn, Sir Bobby Robson and Kevin Keegan who are all my heroes.
Ian T Evans
4 августа, 2011 at 13:27
Hi Darren
Can you tell me how the work permit situation works with all the young South Americans you bring in (I am presuming that they must have some European expierence) — My permits always seem to be rejected when I try to dip into South America!
Anyhows great story I have enjoyed reading it from start to finish in the last 3 days! Don’t think the boss would be too happy with it tho!
Darren Smith
4 августа, 2011 at 18:52
Hey Ian, basically I have found that quality stars from South America will definitely get a work permit but the lesser ones may not. I haven’t had a problem yet in S.America but then again I am signing regens at the age of 17 or younger, whereas you may be signing real life players that have pre set work permit settings. Either way, the work permits can’t be altered, if your player is rejected a work permit then that is that, you are appealing the decision aren’t you? Because sometimes they do give the work permit after an appeal. I hope you can start getting some samba stars soon, but you may struggle at the start of the game with certain players.
Wow, to read the full story in three days is commitment. :) Then again, you’re being paid to do it and avoid boredom or work :) Glad you like it mate.
Ian T Evans
5 августа, 2011 at 16:27
Ahhhh that explains it, so if I spot a regen after the first season I should have a better chance of securing his signature — thanks for that.
Darren Smith
5 августа, 2011 at 19:08
I’ll be honest mate, I have spotted tonnes of regens and signed them straight away so not sure if thats the case but you will find that the more potential they have the more chance you have of getting a work permit. Also, try scouting the player and your scout will tell you if he struggles for a work permit.
Daniel
5 августа, 2011 at 01:48
hey darren great work as usual. Unfortunatley i wont be able to post on the svouting network for at least 2 weeks as i am waiting for a replacement laptop as mine is broken
Darren Smith
5 августа, 2011 at 11:44
Thanks Daniel, just come back to the scouting network when all is sorted.
Malhar Bhadbhade
5 августа, 2011 at 07:10
hey darren. reading your blog for the first time and i’m already a fan :D i just wanted to ask you…about your regens…i’m in my third season with real madrid…upgraded my youth recruitment to extensive, got the best scouts…state of the art youth facilities…BUT i never get any good regens either from my club or elsewhere. and the thing that annoys me most i when south american regens r touted to play at similar levels to some of my best players and have quality potential, but when they eventually join me when they’re 18, they’re useless. how did u go about getting all these amazing players. and seriously, 200 is very plausible at this rate. i mean 4-0 against milan, r u kidding. need an extra time goal against united with real to win my first champions league. keep up the good work!
Darren Smith
5 августа, 2011 at 11:50
:) Thanks Malhar, finding the best regens is about knowing where to look and what to look for I guess…now in terms of where to look you should read this article I wrote https://www.footballmanagerstory.com/2011/05/football-manager-how-to-find-the-best-regens/ As for what to look for in regens, well it only comes with experience and the more flops you buy the easier it is to avoid them. Just remember a regen has potential at the start and very rarely tonnes of current ability meaning they won’t play well from day one. As for getting regens through your academy, well thats largely luck…I’ve only had one worthwhile regen come from my academy in 10 seasons.
I will provide the screenshots in my next post which is published tonight so stay tuned mate, my starting XI plus Zeigler who makes the bench will be there.
P.S. Let me know if there are any specific questions you want answering as I’m happy to help.
Malhar Bhadbhade
5 августа, 2011 at 13:06
thanks a lot Darren :) turns out i’ve already read that article. and also printed it :D i’ve got some regens with quality potential, so we’ll see how it goes. they’re currently in my U-19s team, who r owning their league big time. so i’m happy with that. i’ll play some of them occasionally in some matches. anyway, can’t wait to see the screenshots and also the massive transfer news.
Malhar Bhadbhade
5 августа, 2011 at 13:20
also, is there somewhere where i can post screenshots of some of my better regens, so you can tell me what you think of them?
Sears
5 августа, 2011 at 18:32
Email him, or post them in the forum ;)
Darren Smith
5 августа, 2011 at 19:07
OK mate, well my number one rule for developing any youth is game time. I currently have a young striker with good technical ability, but his pace stops him from scoring often. However, without game time his pace won’t improve as much as I’d like so I play him when I am confident of victory and can afford to let other players than my striker score. He should play around 15 games this year and that will improve him massively.
As for the screenshots you can upload them to imageshack and then copy and paste the link URL for the image to any of these comments. I can then click the link and see your regens.
Malhar Bhadbhade
5 августа, 2011 at 07:13
also, could u post screenshots of ur starting 11, whenever u have the time, coz i’m really interested in seeing your entire tea. especially your right back, who if i remember right, had an average rating of 7.90. crazy!
Malhar Bhadbhade
5 августа, 2011 at 07:33
sorry, but now i’m even more desperate to c screenshots of your team :D it’s awesome!!!! looking forward to seeing zeigler, santos and ance — something.
Malhar Bhadbhade
6 августа, 2011 at 00:50
http://imageshack.us/f/232/thibaultlegrandprofilea.png/ — Thibault Legrand, my best regen I think
http://imageshack.us/f/135/melvinweibelprofileattr.png/ — Melvin Weibel, have high hopes for him.
http://imageshack.us/f/35/lucajezequelprofileattr.png/ — Luca Jezequel, tipped to be quality..dunno about that.
http://imageshack.us/f/688/stevejenkinsprofileattr.png/ — Steve Jenkins, a player im desperately trying to buy from ManUtd. his report says he’s extremely interested in joining, and united accepted my bid, but he wont enter contract talks with me. no idea why, any suggestions?
http://imageshack.us/f/21/marcogiorgiprofileattri.png/ — Marco Giorgi, Arsenal striker. wondering whether I should buy him?
Darren Smith
6 августа, 2011 at 08:36
Very nice regens Malhar and I’d try desperately to sign them in my Newcastle save. Legrand could be the best around while Weibel is a little light mentally but that will grow quickly with game time and then don’t underestimate Jezequel as he has the right attributes in the right places, I think he could be brilliant too. Jenkins is a must buy but he may be rejecting you because he just signed for United or you tried negotiating a contract previously but he didn’t like the offer? Other than that I’m stumped but maybe try praising him to the media and that could spark interest from his side. I do think Giorgi is worth signing but only if he’ll get first team football within two seasons. That is the key to all these players, they must be playing at least 15 matches a year within the next two seasons. Basically youngsters experience their biggest growth from the ages of 17-22 and if you don’t play them through this period they won’t be learning on the field skills that can’t be taught in training. Thats how it works in real life and I believe FM is in depth enough to have included that. I use this analogy and its worked well, if I can’t play someone I send them on loan to a good club, with great training facilities and only if they offer regular first team football.
Malhar Bhadbhade
6 августа, 2011 at 13:32
i will definitely give them as much game time as possible. i’m trying to reduce the size of my squad at the moment. got way too many players. just have to find the right matches to play them in. we’ll see how it goes. anyway, thanks for your opinion. looking forward to your next post.
Darren Smith
6 августа, 2011 at 13:58
No problem mate.
Malhar Bhadbhade
7 августа, 2011 at 00:18
i just cant figure out which games to play them in. was winning the league comfortably until i got smashed 4-0 at camp nou by barca, so now they’re just one point behind me. cant risk them in league games. and i’m playing bayern in my first knock-out round, definitely cant risk them there. what games do u play ur youngsters in?
Malhar Bhadbhade
7 августа, 2011 at 07:55
played Thibault Legrand for all of my recent games. scored 3 goals in 4 games, got a couple of assists, average rating of 8.15. but then he broke his leg, out for between 5-6 months. devastated.
Darren Smith
7 августа, 2011 at 09:08
Well that is one example of why I play my youth for one game and see how they settle, then depending on their performance I may keep using them every other match. Such a shame he got injured though.
I would use three youngsters at a time against sides in the bottom 7 of the league or when you feel the first Champions League leg has finished off the tie and you can play around in the second.