Notts County Story — November 2014

Hello fellow Football Manager addicts and welcome to a new dose of our daily drug, a new episode of the Notts County story. My Magpies were top of the table at the end of October, we were showing good form and I hoped that it would continue until the end of the year. Let’s see how November went…

The first game of the month was away at last placed Wolves, they were still struggling to get their first win of the season. Considering their shape I was entitled to expect a win but the game proved to be more difficult than expected. We started the game well, dictating play and dominating the field. Unfortunately we were missing the target quite often but Guilherme, back after the injury that kept him away for a month, struck the ball well from the edge of the area and sent it into the back of the net. I was hoping to double the lead in the second half but Wolves struck five minutes after the interval with a fantastic free kick shot from 30 yards out. We got back to attacking and we finally scored again after hitting the crossbar twice. Ibrahimovic, in for Guilherme, set up Rafael Sobis for an easy finish and we were back in the lead. We were in control of the game but disaster struck four minutes from time, Havard Nordtveit failed to clear a corner kick cross and Wolves scored an unlikely equalizer. I was disappointed and furious, we stupidly dropped two easy points.

It was quite a blow for the morale before an important game, the away game at CSKA Moscow in the Champions League group. We needed a win to secure the qualification with two games to spare but I would have been happy with a draw given the circumstances. Unfortunately the poor defending that we displayed against Wolves continued, Ochoa had to outdo himself to keep a clean sheet in the first half. I was eagerly waiting for the half time break when wonderkid Sam Himshelwood took matters into his own hands to give us the lead: he took the ball from the right flank, cut inside and shot from the edge of the area with his left! The ball went past Akinfeev and we were 1-0 up against the run of play. We looked much better after the interval, we were causing CSKA all sorts of problems but were unlucky again, we hit the woodwork twice and then the Russians punished us on a counter attack. The game was all square and the two teams were looking quite evenly matched, we needed a touch of genius to get back in the lead. That came from Rafael Sobis, the Brazilian striker placed in one of his powerful shots nine minutes from time. We withstood the pressure in the last minutes of the game and it was over, we were through to the next round with two games to spare!

In the other game of the group mighty A.C. Milan were surprisingly held to a 3-3 draw at Brondby, so we had a good chance of staying top of the table. The next game was at home with Milan, that was going to decide who would be the group leaders.

Back to the Premier League, we had to get another three points. The next game was at home with 18th placed Stoke City, a struggling team that was coming from a poor run of nine games without a win. We got off to a great start as midfielder Kevin Thomson gave us the lead with a fine volley from the edge of the box, I was hoping for an easy win at that point. We didn’t create too much pressure until half time though but we still could have doubled the lead but unfortunately the woodwork was against us again. Kevin Thomson got injured quite badly, he’s going to be out for two months. The second half was pretty quiet, it seemed like we were heading for a quiet win but Stoke got the equalizer with a corner kick header! Centre back Havard Nordtveit used his strength a few minutes from time, he made room for himself in a corner kick scuffle and powered it in from point blank range. It was a scrappy win and I was not happy about it, we should have won comfortably but my defenders showed some unforgivable lapses in concentration again.

I was hoping to get back on track in the next game, away at 16th placed Ipswich. I was in for a big disappointment though, the team looked unrecognizable in the first half and some atrocious defending gave former Notts County player Jacob Mellis the chance to score against his ex team mates. Ochoa had a lot of work to do in order to keep the scoreline decent and we had to thank him again for the wonderful saves. Things had to change though, I made it clear for the players at half time that I wouldn’t be tolerating such a display. The harsh half time team talk seemed to pay off, the team was looking way better but Sobis and Guilherme managed to hit the woodwork again! Our captain, Steven Defour, had to step up and show his leadership, he banged one in from 20 yards out and we were back on level terms. A few minutes later right back Martin Martinez whipped in a powerful cross, Ashley Young beat the defender to the ball and scored with a fine touch on the volley. It wasn’t over yet though, some poor defending gave Ipswich the chance to score again but Ochoa kept the points with a couple of stunning saves. I was quite worried about our defensive display, I was thinking that if Ipswich can create so many chances with us then Milan will surely humiliate us…

A break was just what we needed and the international fixtures came at the right moment. I had to travel away to Portugal with the England team and I had a lot to worry about, some of the most important players were injured (Rooney, Walcott, Delph, Shelvey) so I had to improvise a bit. I decided to start with Terry in the middle of the defense, he was considered to be the best English centre back although I was quite unsure about that because of his declining pace at the age of 33. On the other hand Portugal were fielding a full strength squad, Cristiano Ronaldo included. Go to the next page to read the rest of the story.

Go to the next page to read the rest of the story.

Portugal started the game well, they were dominating and getting quite a few shots on target. Ben Foster was in good shape though, he never looked vulnerable although Portugal‘s strikers were buzzing past Terry like Formula 1 cars past a pickup truck. We rarely got forward in the first half but when we did, we were deadly. Sam Hinshelwood sent a fine diagonal pass to the opposite wing for Ashley Young, the left winger shot to the far post but the keeper got a hand to it. The ball bounced clear and Nathan Delfouneso powered it in, his first goal for England! I replaced John Terry at half time and our defending improved drastically, Portugal failed to create any more chances. We stood our ground well and just when the game was getting a tad boring Steven Gerrard played a nice through ball for Welbeck, the striker dribbled past an opponent and powered it in! I was quite pleased with the win as Portugal were the favorites before the game. I decided not to call up Terry anymore although I might get some criticism for that, he is (or was) a great player but my plans for the team don’t include him anymore as I don’t want to defend deep and draw the opposition onto us, I want to play attacking and attractive football.

Back to the Premier League after the international break, our next game was at home with disappointing 11th placed Tottenham. We started the game well but their keeper, Gomes, denied us with a few miraculous saves. Guilherme did give us the lead eventually, he scored with one of his trademark placed shots. We continued to be totally in control after the interval but the finishing was quite wasteful. We finally doubled the lead 14 minutes from time when Gergely Varga converted a penalty kick, it was a solid performance and we could have scored quite a few more goals. I was hoping that the good display would boost the morale for the tough challenges that were lying ahead of us.

Next up, the match of the season at Meadow Lane, A.C. Milan were coming to Nottingham. We got a draw at San Siro earlier in the season, it ended 1-1 back then but it was a game in which we had a lot of defending to do. Milan were starting with a very attacking setup again with Pato behind the two strikers, Paloschi and Huntelaar. The first 20 minutes of the match were fairly even, none of the two teams managed to create clear chances. We took the lead from a corner kick, Guilherme scored with a fine header and the capacity crowd at Meadow Lane was in heaven! Milan reacted with fury but we defended well and then took control of the game until half time. We even had two great chances to score but missed them. The match took an unfortunate turn right after the break, we failed to clear a corner kick ball and Pato scored the equalizer. We continued to push forward after the goal, the team was looking ready to take the lead again. Milan were launching deadly counter attacks though, Ochoa miraculously denied Pato on one occasion. The game continued with us struggling to make possession count and Milan waiting for the perfect opportunity to punish us on the break. Nothing important happened until the final whistle, we failed to beat Milan although we had a pretty good chance. I guess we’ll leave that for the next time…

Back to the Premier League for the last game of the month, a tough one at Anfield Road. Liverpool were down in 5th place, 9 points behind us, after a not very convincing run in the last few matches. I don’t know if I mentioned this before but their manager is now… Josep Guardiola. Anyway, back to the game. We played very well in the first half, we were in control of the game but were not very lucky as we struck the woodwork again, twice! Liverpool had a good chance on a counter attack but Ochoa denied Torres with a fantastic save. The second half was less convincing, we failed to create any more chances and some of my players were showing signs of fatigue. We didn’t have any problems in defense though, so the game ended 0-0.

We were still top of the table at the end of the month with quite a few teams closely behind us. I think that we’ll have an exciting season :)

December will bring some important games, away at second placed Manchester City and then the Nottingham Derby. We’ll also have the Carling Cup quarter final to play, I really want to get to the final this season.

That’s how November was folks, I am still a bit angry about dropping those two points at Wolves… I think that I need to bring in a new centre back in January, hopefully I’ll get enough money for that by selling goalkeeper Sergio Romero. We’ll see about that later, thanks for reading.

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