Darren — Ultimate European Challenge, Bordeaux Aug-Dec 2020/21

Hey guys and welcome back to my Ultimate European Challenge story. During my last post you saw me splash the cash with Bordeaux. After a very bad start to life in France , reinforcements were needed. We signed some great prospects and pace was the theme, hopefully my latest acquisitions are good enough to mount a title challenge. Today I will reveal the results up until December, so lets see how I got on. But first I want to show you an important loan signing. After paying £10 million for Vidal, I felt we still needed a good backup striker. Then I noticed Van Stokkom (click name to view profile) available on loan from West Ham. The Dutch 26 year old has attributes in the right areas and should suit my poacher role well.

Ligue 1 and Coupe De La Ligue results — August to September

One word sums my side up, inconsistent. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve witnessed an incredible improvement from last season but this still isn’t title winning form. My first four matches went well as Bordeaux beat Stade Caen, Monaco, Saint-Etienne and Sochaux. Then it all came caving in as we looked the lesser side in a 1-1 away draw to Auxerre. Playing Lille wasn’t a walk in the park either as they held us to a 2-2 draw. My defence was in need of reinforcements, but with no money I need to work a way around the leak. This was only highlighted further as we lost 4-1 to Valenciennes and crashed out of the Coupe De La Ligue. Only a scrappy performance at the end of September saved my blushes. We travelled to Toulouse and rather fortunately won 2-1. One big positive was San Roman’s form, the Argentine winger had become our best player and showed signs of genius so far.

Ligue 1 results — October

What an annoying month, the trees are losing their leaves and the air is starting to chill…all the while Bordeaux continue to frustrate me. We beat Le Mans 4-0, Stade Rennais 3-0 and GF 38 3-1. All excellent and title winning form, but my boys threw it all away by losing the matches that really matter. Both Marseille and Lyon dominated against us as we lost 1-0. My two closest title rivals had taken six points away from me and gained an extra three for themselves. Losing matches like this could cost me top spot and maybe even Champions League. I honestly could not see a way through the French giants, as they both have an incredible back four. I guess the main positive is Vidal, my Argentine striker has scored 10 goals from 12 games already and seems to like the French opposition.

Ligue 1 results — November to December

Its getting real cold now as the winter frost settles in, and my defence seemed almost frozen early on in November. After thrashing Aries-Avignon 4-1, I was shocked to just draw 2-2 vs PSG. Then a very lucky 3-2 victory over Nice was followed by another disappointing draw against Valenciennes. Thankfully this poor run was followed by three victories, we seem less like title challengers with every month that passes. On a more positive note, Vidal scored during every single game and Olivier Le Gac was proving more than worth his £1.2 million fee. A real coup chipping in with 8 assists.

Below are highlights from my 4-0 victory over Havre FC. You see just how amazing Vidal has been for me. His dribbling and pace cause mayhem, while his finishing has led to a hat full of goals.

Ligue 1 table — title challenge over already??

No where near over mathematically. There are so many points to play for and Bordeaux are just six points behind top with a game in hand. However, my worry comes in the form of my defence. We are leaking too many goals and have no money to strengthen. This is hindering us against Marseille and Lyon because my attackers get few chances while the defence endures an onslaught. If I can work out a way of beating those two, the title is mine. If not, I’ll have to settle for third.

Squad stats

Before I do the run down of my best players, CsAtlantis requested Missilou’s profile. So here it is mate, just click on the players name. He has featured from the bench this year and that shows how bad my team was last season, as he was the best player. Anyway, back to this season and my best players. Vidal has been phenomenal, scoring 21 goals from 19 starts. My left winger, San Roman has also featured with 9 goals and 3 assists. From my cheap signings, central midfielder, Testa stands out with 11 assists and 3 goals. The Italian was bought from Man City for just £2.7 million. While Bergkamp shows a lot of promise and has done well, the Dutch winger has been inconsistent. I expected more than 4 goals and 6 assists, plus his average rating of 7.03 suggests there’s a lot more to come.

Second half of the season — fixtures

My title challenge is far from dead, but bad results against Marseille and Lyon will surely end it. My poor form away from home could also hinder the challenge, so I guess you could say I’m not optimistic. The lads really must perform better during our second half of the season. I just hope the defensive errors will stop been so persistent.

Well that is all for today’s update. I hope you enjoyed the read and thanks for stopping by. If you have any questions, just ask below and I look forward to your comments as always.