Hello friends and welcome to a particularly exciting episode of my Football Manager 2012 story. I say it’s quite exciting because of two major events that happened in the first half of my 14th season in charge of Viitorul Constanta, you will find out all the details in a bit. Until then, let’s see how our change of reputation to «continental» affected our summer.
First of all, we moved up to third place in the European club rankings and that is a major achievement. Imagine this: only Real Madrid and Internazionale Milano are ahead of Viitorul Constanta in these rankings. I still can’t believe that :)
The Romanian top flight also had a slight increase in the European rankings, I guess we could do a lot better in there with another strong club in Liga 1. Unfortunately we are the only strong enough club in there, at least until now.
And now, the first big news of the summer: the Romanian FA sacked the national team coach after a rather poor display at the 2024 European Championship, I applied for the job and I got it! This is something that I really wanted at this point in my career.
However, the FA seem more optimistic and demanding than me. Their expectation, minimum expectation, is to finish second in the World Cup Qualifying group. That doesn’t sound too bad, but here are the names of the teams in our group: Germany, Belgium, Sweden, Armenia, Moldova, Andorra. OK, we can go past the last three easily, but the top three will surely be hard to beat. Secondly, Romania‘s last qualification to a World Cup tournament was in… 1998!
We’ll return to the national team later to see how my first games in charge went, now let’s move back to the club. As you know I was hoping to bring in at least a couple world class players this summer, given the reputation increase. The board gave me a pretty good transfer budget, no complaints, but I had to get more money for the players I wanted to sign.
That is why I decided to sell quite a few players from the Under 19s team, most of them were lads whose potential was not good enough to help us at this level. I also let go three first team players for quite a bit of money: midfielder Roman Benes (9.5 million pounds — Tottenham) and strikers Juan Cruz Argenti (6.25 million — Schalke) and Jerome Vrignaud (5.75 million — Werder Bremen).
And now… the incoming lads. Just three this time: first there was a 15-year old Danish prospect, nothing spectacular there. Then I got a replacement for one of the two strikers, a talented and lightning-fast Dutch forward: Cor van Wonderen (click the name to view his profile).
And last but definitely not least… the biggest signing yet. He’s an England international, he was a first team player at Arsenal, I paid no less than 26.5 million pounds for him… Ladies and gentlemen, enter Jed Mitchel-King!
He has scored a few goals against us in the Champions League, he always tormented my defenders, and I’ve always wanted to sign him. That was just a dream until this summer, probably due to the club reputation. By the way, he scored an awesome goal at the European Championship against Romania: click here to watch
So, with these new players, I have a pretty strong 24-man squad for the season:
Goalkeepers: Nicolas Salva, Vaninho
Right Backs: Tomislav Djurdjek, Henning Valentin
Left Backs: Sebastien Verdier, Danut Gongolea
Centre Backs: Xavier Dumont, Georgica Dicu, Fabian Caporale, Michiel Aarts
Central Midfielders: Hennie Paauwe, Yasen Zlatinski, Maximiliano Ceballos, Alin Dicher, Mike Broadhead, Hector Fernandez
Strikers: Jed Mitchel-King, Dramane Sow, Rastislav Benko, Manoel, Cor van Wonderen, Richard Hendry, Guido van der Meulen
That said, let’s move on to the results. We kicked off the season with another Romanian Super Cup win, I can’t remember how many of these we have won. Then we hammered most of our league competitors but some complacency in December ruined our 100% record. As you can see, Jed Mitchel-King‘s name appears quite often in the goal scorers section :)
The league table after 18 matches shows that we will probably win another title, but that was never in doubt, at least in my mind.
The Romanian Cup run was not as easy as I would have wanted, as we needed a penalty shoot-out to advance to the semi finals. That was, once again, due to sheer complacency.
We showed no complacency and little mercy in the Champions League though, we won the group quite comfortably with only AC Milan being able to hold us to a draw. Once again, notice Jed Mitchel-King‘s name in the goal scorers column :)
The lad scored no less than 17 goals so far, a pretty good contribution for a new signing. All of my strikers did well up to this point, except Rastislav Benko, who had a serious injury at the start of the season and then struggled to get back into his usual shape. I hope he will bounce back after the winter break.
And now let’s return to my national team job, I was thrown straight into the action as my debut game was against Belgium in the World Cup Quals. Unfortunately that game didn’t go too well, we lost 2-1 even though a draw seemed the fair result. The problem was that the team was not very familiar with the tactics, as I switched the national team to the Barcelona tactic that I have been using at the club.
Things gradually improved after that match though as we beat Armenia 3-0 away and then clinched a very important 1-0 home win against Sweden. However, we were close to getting stunned in Moldova but Manoel (who else?) clinched the three points for us with a late goal.
Belgium seem the strongest until now, as they defeated both us and Germany but were held to a draw by Sweden. Germany also recorded a draw against Sweden, and that leaves us in second place after four games. There’s still a long way to go though and we haven’t faced Germany yet…
That’s about it for now folks, I hope you have enjoyed this episode. I am quite happy to have finally signed a big-name player, it was quite a costly acquisition but it represents a landmark in the club history. No Romanian club has ever managed to sign an England international so I guess you understand why I say this was a historic moment. We’ll see if that will win us any big trophies though…
Thanks a lot for reading, looking forward to your feedback.
saltwater
20 августа, 2012 at 17:28
Wow Jed Mitchel-King’s stats are out of this world, just out of sheer curiousity what striker position do you play him in?
Well done getting the Ramanian job, but your CV would have probably been double the size of the next guy anyway. :)
Really close to call in terms of the national qualifying stages, completely the opposite to the domestic league. Slightly annoying that second place finishers don’t utilise their champions league money to put up more of a challenge towards you, then again I bet they rarely get into the group stages, but that’s virtual football I guess.
Good Luck in the knockouts!
Johnny Karp
20 августа, 2012 at 19:07
I employ him in one of the defensive forward positions, usually on the right side. As for the second placed, those rarely get to the group stage in real life anyway, last year’s runner-up from the Romanian league got knocked out by Fenerbahce in the second or third preliminary round. Thanks for the good luck wish ;)
Adam D
20 августа, 2012 at 17:50
That’s how realistic the game is, even in the virtual world Arsenal players are leaving to try and win stuff :-)
Is it annoying that none of the other Romanian clubs are stepping it up their game? Surely some of them must have had some Euro money by now.
Johnny Karp
20 августа, 2012 at 19:08
Hahaha, good one Adam :) As for the other Romanian clubs, some have improved but not by much, we are way ahead of the bunch in terms of squad quality.
pedro roriz
20 августа, 2012 at 17:50
great news with the national team! it will add some extra challenge to your story and i think it will give you a bunch of more seasons to have some fun!
Johnny Karp
20 августа, 2012 at 19:09
I agree Pedro, even though I don’t have too many quality players to work with in the national team.
Malhar Bhadbhade
20 августа, 2012 at 18:21
hi Johnny,
wow, that is some signing indeed! Massive capture for you! I love strikers with 20 pace, but I’ve never had one that’s combined that with 20 finishing. He is just an incredible player. Congrats on signing him. He seems to be tearing the league apart, which is always good to see from a new signing. Looks like you’re headed for another league and cup double..it’s just getting ludicrous now :D CL will be harder to win, but now you have the super-weapon that you’ve never had before :D Your results with the national team were quite solid too! Good luck for qualifying! Anyway, good luck for the rest of the season!
Johnny Karp
20 августа, 2012 at 19:10
Thanks Malhar, it is a dream signing for me and I’m sure he will continue to score loads if he manages to avoid injuries.
David B
20 августа, 2012 at 18:56
I have similar experience with Mladá Boleslav (czech league). In the course of the 4th season I was almost unbeatable, hammering others 4:0, 5:1 and so on. But the end ruined my record as well as it happened to you. Btw. in the summer of 2015 new businessman took over the club and gave me stunning 34M for transfers. Recently I played a tied game against Manchester United and have equal number of chances. With such progress I think I can catch you within next 5 seasons (2020). However, I know very well it gets slower and slower to get level with the best like Barca, Real, Bayern etc…. And… I’m also manager of the Czech republic national team with which I finished first in Euro Qual. 2016, beating England twice 1:0… So I’t really looks I’m following in your foot steps. :-) It’s a shame I can’t share my story here, on the main page…. TAKE CARE!
Johnny Karp
20 августа, 2012 at 19:11
Thanks for sharing your experience, I wish you the best of luck and a Champions League trophy soon :) Are you writing a story in our forum? If not, why don’t you? :P
David B
20 августа, 2012 at 19:25
I already did. Thank you for your thanks. :D I’m looking forward to your new posts.
Johnny Karp
20 августа, 2012 at 19:39
Then you could add the link to your story in the URL field when commenting, let more people know about it.
Darren Smith
20 августа, 2012 at 18:58
Wow thats a lot of positive news to take in Johnny, one hell of a signing there and the Englishmen looks to have hit the ground running. Also to be third in the European rankings is very impressive, I didn’t realize you’d crept so high. I think the Romania job will be a brilliant addition also, tough qualifying group but you have a chance.
Johnny Karp
20 августа, 2012 at 19:12
We were sixth in the European rankings last season, that was quite high anyway, but third is really unbelievable, I agree.
Ana Garcia
20 августа, 2012 at 19:13
Great update!!
Glad you took my advice and went for the Romanian job! Will be interesting to see if you can take them to the world cup its been far too long!
That signing is incredible! His stats are amazing he will be like the Messi of Romania might even get 50+ this season in the league!!
Kind of annoys me though that in your assistant ratings he has only 4* current ability when is easy to see he is a 5* player!
Looking forward to the next update, best of luck Johnny!
Johnny Karp
20 августа, 2012 at 19:22
Thanks Ana. About the 4-star rating, I guess that shows how strong the team is, because the star ratings are influenced by the overall quality of the team. It’s hard to get a five-star player in a generally strong team.
vaibhavc
20 августа, 2012 at 19:14
Wow Jed King looks amazing, 20 finishing and pace! His composure could increase, but hes still class. As usual, domination in Romania. And congrats about the Romania job, but Belgium and Germany are tough opponents.
Johnny Karp
20 августа, 2012 at 19:22
Thanks Vaibhav, I wish I had a Jed Mitchel-King in the Romania squad, then I wouldn’t have to worry about the likes of Germany :)
Victor Baluta
20 августа, 2012 at 20:03
As usual you are doing very good in the first half of the season, having no problems in the national league and cup. The CL group games went as expected as well and as a Romanian I really understand your excitement regarding the signing of such a good player.
About the national team it’s far to say that you are doing very well in such a tough group. I hope you’ll be able to qualify Romania to the World Cup. I would also be interested in the players you have in the squad because I am sure that you can’t use just Viitorul players.
Johnny Karp
21 августа, 2012 at 06:03
Thanks Victor. About the national team, I will probably go into details about the players in a future post. I can say that I’m using quite a few Viitorul players, all of those who are eligible to play for Romania, plus a few former Viitorul players as well. And I appointed Cristian Chivu as my assistant manager :)
Victor Baluta
22 августа, 2012 at 09:11
Well that’s very interesting. I think he has good stats because he played in powerful championships and he learned a lot about Dutch and Italian football.
He might know some things about working with youngsters from his time spend at Ajax, which have amazing youth facilities and many young players are promoted by them. Maybe he will try to found an Academy like Hagi and will give you the chance for a new story. ;)
P.S. : In real life I also imagine him becoming a manager, a coach rather than a federation president.
Johnny Karp
22 августа, 2012 at 10:08
I agree, I think Chivu has what it takes to be a pretty good coach. But he still has a few years left as a player, hopefully he will come back to the national team. His stats as a coach in the game are very good, that’s why I appointed him as my assistant ;)
Karl Deighton
20 августа, 2012 at 20:53
Well done on the national job!
Jed is amazing, he has and will continue to tear apart the league. Doesn’t that bore you now?
Going nicely in Europe and I wouldn’t be suprised if we see Viitorul in another CL final.
Good luck
Johnny Karp
21 августа, 2012 at 06:04
Thanks. And no, I’m not bored at all, I like to watch the team demolish any opposition any time :)
Karl Deighton
21 августа, 2012 at 08:33
Haha, I hear a lot of people whn the are dominating saying they a bored. With San Marino I’m not bored either, it’s probably the most fun I’ve had on the save :)
Johnny Karp
21 августа, 2012 at 08:50
I still watch all the games in extended highlights mode and loving every minute of each match :)
Kevin
20 августа, 2012 at 21:11
Hi Johnny
Actually both your signings — Cor van Wonderenlook and Jed King are incredible with the latter being one of the best forwards I’ve seen. Great season so far and congrats on the Romanian job. Now we are both international managers at the same time :)
Johnny Karp
21 августа, 2012 at 06:04
Thanks Kevin. Actually I have set up a friendly against Canada for 2025 :)
Kevin
23 августа, 2012 at 13:16
I was going to set up one too against Romania as they were available but didn’t want to lose…LOL!
Gaurav Chaddah
20 августа, 2012 at 22:00
Great start to the season their pal, league is just a formality and nice to see you put to 3rd in the club rankings and congrats on the Romania job, what’s your goals with them? :D
Johnny Karp
21 августа, 2012 at 06:06
Thanks mate. About Romania, my immediate goal is to get them to the World Cup but it will probably be a very tough challenge.
Lye
21 августа, 2012 at 02:05
I just wish my game can produce a English regen like King. Great signing there, he will be out of this world in the league. The squad definitely becomes stronger with King and Wonderen. The striking partnership between these two will be terrific and they will improve your chances of dominating everywhere this season. Congrats on the Romanian job, who else but you to bring glory to the national team. So well done Romanian FA.
Johnny Karp
21 августа, 2012 at 06:07
Thanks Lye, King is a fantastic player indeed and I’m still wondering how and why Arsenal let him go.
CsAtlantis
21 августа, 2012 at 03:09
A hefty fee for Jed-Mitchel King but what a buy! Superb finishing combined with superb pace, brilliant scoring record in the Champions League!
Congratulations on getting the Romanian job, glad to see Manoel still contributing to the national team (he’s not playing so much for your club, but that’s understandable, as good as he is King is just that much better)
Good luck on reaching the playoffs for your World Cup group
Johnny Karp
21 августа, 2012 at 06:08
Thanks mate. Manoel is still getting his fair share of first team football and he’s doing a decent job, no complaints. In fact, I think I’ll keep him at the club until he decides to retire, the club owes him a lot.
Calin
21 августа, 2012 at 07:12
Wow, Johnny, I don’t even know where to begin :) You managed to bring some amazing players in the squad, especially that English striker which is absolutely amazing (just looking at his international stats makes my eyes pop out :D) He’s probably the best lad to play in Romania for a LOOONG time now :)
And it looks so nice that you got the Romania job — I always wanted to get offered this job, but never did :) I am sure you will bring the team the glory they so much need, and the start is extremely promising. It’s good that the Germany game was not among the first — it allows you to gel your team and let them learn the tactics. Good luck!
Johnny Karp
21 августа, 2012 at 09:46
Thanks Calin. I am quite happy as well, Mitchel-King is probably the best foreign player that has ever set foot in Liga 1. As for the national team, it will be very tough to get to the World Cup but I agree that playing Germany later on is a slight advantage.
Mariano
21 августа, 2012 at 07:25
Hi Johnny,
Nice post to read, the English man attributes looks amazing………….How do you do to find so good players?:)!
Cheers
Johnny Karp
21 августа, 2012 at 08:49
Thanks. I just look for them, with the help of my scouts. They do most of the finding part actually :)
TheZiggy
21 августа, 2012 at 12:57
Your new English striker is absolutely stunning. So much pace and agility with good dribbling skill, and then topping it off with max finishing attribute makes him one of the deadliest strikers I’ve seen.
So far unbeaten, even if the complacency did provide a couple of narrow squeaks. Will be interesting to see how the second half of the season pans out.
Johnny Karp
21 августа, 2012 at 13:20
He surely is the best striker that has ever played in the Romanian league, I’m quite sure of that.
NUFCdan
21 августа, 2012 at 22:01
Well done on getting the national job! good start to the season!
Johnny Karp
22 августа, 2012 at 10:04
Thanks mate.
Darren Smith
22 августа, 2012 at 12:06
Thanks mate.
Bhargav
22 августа, 2012 at 01:04
Wow! Johnny, that’s really nuts. Third best team in all of Europe! Do you plan to call it a day on this campaign when you hit first?
Johnny Karp
22 августа, 2012 at 10:06
I don’t have that as a goal, the story will probably stop when FM 2013 comes out.
Acss
22 августа, 2012 at 12:46
That’s another incredible season mate. Really glad you took the national team and I hope you’ll get that 2nd place but it’s going to be a tough challenge. As for the club, those signings are great and I’m looking forward to see how far you reach in the CL, I believe that your goal now is to reach at least the semi-finals, for you really have a great team and you should aim for that CL trophy from now on (you are 3rd placed in the rankings, after all). Good luck! :)
Johnny Karp
22 августа, 2012 at 13:41
Thanks mate. My aim is to reach the Champions League final again, that’s quite obvious after spending more than 30 million on two players. Whether we can go that far remains to be seen though.
Dominic
22 августа, 2012 at 23:12
Guess what did you know that Viitorul Constanta actually got promoted in real life and will be playing with the likes of Vaslui and CFR Cluj next season. Wonder if they will dominate the league the way you have!!?
Johnny Karp
23 августа, 2012 at 10:24
I surely did know that. In fact, they have already started the season but things are not going too well so far, 3 draws and 2 losses in the first five games. But I did have some problems in my first season in the top flight so I hope they will recover and finish somewhere in mid-table this season.