Here we go folks, it’s been quite a long time since the last episode of my FM 2012 story so I apologise for keeping you waiting. Some of you might not remember where the previous update left us so here’s a very quick recap: my Viitorul Constanta recorded six straight defeats in the Champions League group stage but that left us with around 4.5 million pounds in the bank, we were second in the Liga 1 table but just one point behind leaders Rapid Bucharest and we were through to the semi finals of the Romanian Cup. And I was waiting…
… waiting for a transfer budget, obviously. The winter transfer window opens on January 28th in Romania and I believed that I was going to receive some news from the board telling me that I have some extra money for transfers. I waited until January 15th, the message didn’t come. Then I decided to ask for the money myself but the answer was a definite no! The chairman explained that our squad is good enough to challenge for the title and although I agree I can’t say I’m not disappointed. So there you go, that’s the meaning of the post title: I’m still waiting for a frickin transfer budget.
No money doesn’t necessarily mean no transfers though, I was able to sell a couple of players and use that money to buy a couple. Here are the details:
Players Out
Constantin Grecu (210K), Madalin Crenganis (100K)
Players In
Milton Mella (free), Silviu Pana (250K), Vasilica Asan (promoted from youth team)
You know that I was keen on bringing in a couple of midfielders and I guess I achieved that with Mella and Pana joining the team while Asan is a Viitorul trainee that will be a backup for the more famous strikers for now.
The winter friendlies went pretty well, we won all but the last one but that game against AEK was a bit strange since we conceded both goals during stoppage time. The team played pretty well throughout those friendlies as well but I had no reason to be happy and that’s because of… injuries:
— Milton Mella got injured against Sigma Olomouc — 6 to 8 weeks
— Manoel got injured against Maribor — 3 weeks
— Mihai Onicas got injured against Padova — 4 to 5 weeks
— Ionut Peteleu got injured against AEK — 2 months
— Juan Belencoso got injured in training after the AEK match — 4 to 5 weeks
We had a tough match right away as we were receiving the visit of 4th placed FC Timisoara, I have to say that I was quite worried given all the injuries.
Viitorul vs FC Timisoara (Liga 1)
Starting Line Up: Octavian Ormenisan — Alvaro Casanova, Edward Motha, Ionut Putanu, Tshepo Tshabalala — Dejan Danicic, Alexandru Lazar, Nenad Grumic — Liviu Ganea, Joabe, Raul Rusescu
My worries were almost totally gone after a few minutes though, the team got off to an excellent start and Liviu Ganea broke the deadlock by taking advantage of a mix-up in the opposition defence. He could have scored his second of the game on 16 minutes when Tshepo Tshabalala found him with a good cross but the striker’s header hit the crossbar. Ganea had yet another chance on 35 minutes when a fine move freed him inside the penalty area but the goalkeeper denied him. The goal did come a few second later though, Joabe was brought down inside the penalty area and midfielder Dejan Danicic coolly converted from the spot. The perfect first half was wrapped up during stoppage time when Ionut Putanu smashed in a corner kick header to make it 3-0.
The second half didn’t seem to bring a different game and we could have extended our lead after just three minutes when substitute Silviu Pana was denied by a great save on a counter attack. Timisoara had their first and last clear cut chance of the game one minute later but they did grab a late consolation goal. We had the three points though and since leaders Rapid were held to a goalless draw we leapfrogged them at the top of the table.
Match highlights: click here to watch
Unfortunately we were unable to repeat that good performance in the next game, away at 8th placed Otelul, and barely clinched a point thanks to an injury time equaliser scored by Raul Rusescu and assisted by new signing Silviu Pana. But we were unstoppable at home and we proved that with a scoring spree against 9th placed Vaslui, we bagged six goals and let in just one. However, playing away seemed a lot more difficult as we produced another disappointing display to record a 1-1 draw at 5th placed U Cluj.
Those two draws moved us back into second place, 1 point behind Rapid, the exact same situation we had before the winter break. We had the chance to prove ourselves though as our next match was at home against Rapid themselves.
Viitorul vs Rapid Bucharest (Liga 1)
Starting Line Up: Octavian Ormenisan — Alvaro Casanova, Edward Motha, Ionut Putanu, Tshepo Tshabalala — Dejan Danicic, Alexandru Lazar, Nenad Grumic — Liviu Ganea, Joabe, Raul Rusescu
We enjoyed a good spell of domination at the beginning of the game but it was fruitless until the 27th minute when we nearly got lucky: a fluke cross from Alvaro Casanova put the opposition goalkeeper in difficulty but Raul Rusescu was unable to convert from just a few yards out. Rapid defended well until half time though and it seemed that we didn’t have enough creativity to get past their fortress.
The game continued in a similar fashion after the break and our first chance after the restart was two minutes before the hour mark when Joabe created a chance inside the penalty area for Liviu Ganea but the latter was denied by the upright. The crowd finally had something to celebrate just one minute later when playmaker Alexandru Lazar took things into his own hands and smashed one in from inside the penalty area. There was no reply from Rapid while we kept pushing for another goal. The former leaders held out for a narrow defeat but that wasn’t enough for them to remain in pole position.
Match highlights:click here to watch
We are first at the end of March but the situation at the top of the table is explosive to say the least: three teams tied on 50 points and three other teams within 5 points! I guess this will be one hell of a title race!
We have 11 more games to play plus the two legs of the Romanian Cup semi final against Dinamo. I really want to win the cup this season but the league is a lot more important so, if the situation will require that, I might rest a few players in the cup and focus on the league.
We still have some injuries to deal with but thankfully most of my players recovered and will probably play a big part in the last two months of the season. Denis Alibec is still leading the goalscorer rankings but Liviu Ganea is breathing down his neck while new midfielder Silviu Pana did very well so far as he provided three assists in only two games as a starter.
That’s about it for now my friends, I wish you all and your families a Happy New Year and a sensational 2012! And thanks a lot for reading this long overdue update ;)
Bhargav
30 декабря, 2011 at 17:50
Always love reading your posts, Johnny. If there is anyone who can pull through this, it’s you!
Johnny Karp
30 декабря, 2011 at 18:21
Thanks mate, I hope I will…
vaibhavc
30 декабря, 2011 at 18:26
Interesting place to stop, I am looking forward to see what happens from here. That win against Rapid was crucial, maybe that will help you in the weeks to come.
Johnny Karp
30 декабря, 2011 at 21:35
Well, I stopped there because of lack of time but I guess the season can only get more interesting from here. That win was quite important indeed but there will be a whole lot more decisive battles to come.
Laxeyman
30 декабря, 2011 at 19:28
Looks like it’s going to be an incredible title race Johnny, it’s unbelievably tight! Funnily enough, the same can be said of your board, they should have offered you some money, but despite that, I’m backing you to win the league :) Good luck!
Johnny Karp
30 декабря, 2011 at 21:36
Thanks mate, it might be tough but I still believe that we can make it.
Kevin
30 декабря, 2011 at 19:38
Hi Johnny
Nice to see you back and with a splendid update as usual though to be honest I was getting worried about you and thought you’d had a game file disaster or perhaps taken off to the Busteni Mountain Resort!
Anyway happy to see that’s not the case either way and that Viitorul are still top of the table despite those horrendous amount of injuries which you’ve coped with admirably. The league is very tight indeed but hopefully you can pull away at some point. Milton Mella looks like a very useful player indeed and I wouldn’t mind him myself for Plymouth
Best of luck with that triple Dinamo encounter coming up!
Johnny Karp
30 декабря, 2011 at 21:37
Hey Kevin! Don’t worry, I’m not running away! I think that those three games against Dinamo can make or break the season.
Darren Smith
30 декабря, 2011 at 21:30
Hey Johnny, while you did endure some frustrating draws I don’t think it will take much to turn them into wins once the ball is rolling. Although the boards negativity is a real shame, I can imagine the sort of plans you have and transfer targets are huge part of the clubs development at this stage, so it must be annoying to have a board restricting you when the finances aren’t too bad. Anyway, I am confident you can get some more silverware so good luck.
Johnny Karp
30 декабря, 2011 at 21:38
Thanks Darren, I guess the board wants to take smaller steps than I would want to but I think we share the same goals overall.
Ana Garcia
30 декабря, 2011 at 23:17
Very tight at the top!
Top six separated by five points should be a very entertaining end of season.
I too always seem to get lots of injuries especially in pre-season/friendlies its very frustrating as I seem to play less and less games to overcome that.
As always the very best of luck and I hope you and your family have brilliant new year. :)
Johnny Karp
30 декабря, 2011 at 23:58
Thanks Ana, the season finale will surely be entertaining but I definitely would have wanted a more quiet one :)
Victor
30 декабря, 2011 at 23:27
Congratulations for your victory against a title challenger and I hope that your amazing team will be able to beat the other title contenders that you’re going to meet in the next games.
I am sure that you’ll win the league again and I hope you’ll also win the Cup.
I think that if you’ll play again in the Champions League groups your board will be more understanding with your demands.
P.S. I wish you a Happy New Year!
Johnny Karp
30 декабря, 2011 at 23:59
Thanks Victor, I hope that I’ll be given a good budget next summer if we manage to win the league again.
Alexandru
31 декабря, 2011 at 04:56
Hi Johnny
I’m glad you decided to write another episode before 2012. I think I became addicted to your story because I checked the site everyday in hope of something new. I see you are doing fine in the league and I want to wish you luck winning that trophy and why not even win the Romanian Cup for some extra budget.
If you don’t remember me, I’m the guy who asked for the match results between Dinamo and Steaua. I wanted to let you know how my season is going so I made some screenshots.
1) Romanian First League
The team played very good even if there we’re two unlucky draws. My defense is a little overpowered considering I only conceded two goals and one of them was from a penalty.
No Dinamo-Steaua until now, but I’m sure I will crush them with ease.
2) Europa League
As you can see my group isn’t an easy one. The team played well in these matches, but the inexperience of the players is noticeable.
3) This is football
This was an unlucky result for me as I conceded the late goal after a quick counter attack when my defence was caught napping. The overall perfomance of my team was very good and I think there wasn’t a big difference betwen the two teams.
4) The Squad
And finally this is the team that fights for the 1st in Liga 1 and for the knockout phase in Europa League. Not too many transfers, but I definitely made some good ones.
I hope I haven’t bored you with my «little» comment and I want to wish you again good luck with Viitorul C-ta.
Alexandru
31 декабря, 2011 at 04:58
It seems like I’m not too good with HTML and links stuff…so I would appreciate if you could fix what I’ve done there :)
Johnny Karp
31 декабря, 2011 at 09:32
Thanks mate, you have a pretty strong squad there and I wish you the best of luck with your career.
Alexandru
2 января, 2012 at 19:33
Hello Johnny
I have to share this with you since I’m very happy and a little upset with my Dinamo Buc. career.
With my Europa League Group F, I needed a win with AS Roma while FC Twente had to make a draw with Maribor. None of these happened, but my team really impressed in their last game in Europa League this season.
Watch this and you will understand why —> http://imageshack.us/f/15/fm2012010221213445.png/
P.S: When will you write the next part of your story? :)
Johnny Karp
2 января, 2012 at 19:38
That was quite unlucky indeed mate, it’s a shame that you missed out on a deserved win. I hope I’ll be able to write a new episode tomorrow.
Woody
31 декабря, 2011 at 09:28
this website was reccomended to me by a friend a few days ago. he and i are also huge fm players!!
i think i have read every fm12 story up to date and iam loving this one
i think you will beat rapid to the title if you dont get anymore peskey 2-4 week injuries
anyway good luck with it and a HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
Johnny Karp
31 декабря, 2011 at 09:33
Thanks Woody, I’m happy that you like the stories. Have a great year and thank that friend for me as well ;)
TheZiggy
31 декабря, 2011 at 13:58
That is astonishingly tight at the top of the league there. Hopefully you can pick up the consistency over the final stretch to take the league title again.
Good luck
Johnny Karp
31 декабря, 2011 at 14:58
Thanks Ziggy, we’ll need some better form to survive this fierce race.
Erick Wolf
31 декабря, 2011 at 14:20
Well that was an interesting read!
I have to say, that 1-0 win was very pleasing (:
Johnny Karp
31 декабря, 2011 at 14:58
Thanks Erick, it was a crucial win indeed.
Martin - F.M.J.S
1 января, 2012 at 00:43
Firstly happy new year johnny hope you have had a good one
Secondly what a great post so close at the top and with the cup I can’t wait see how you will do. I know what you mean, my board are exactly the same don’t want to release any money.
Johnny Karp
1 января, 2012 at 13:22
Thanks mate, it will surely be an exciting finale.
CsAtlantis
1 января, 2012 at 07:44
Happy New Year Johnny, it’s quite a tight title race but hopefully with your players returning from injury you can hang on and grab the title again, surely another Champions League group stage campaign will persuade the board to part with some of the hard-earned money (maybe Hagi sponsored you too much so wants to have some balance in the bank?)
Good luck in your remaining league games and the cup
Johnny Karp
1 января, 2012 at 13:37
Happy New Year to you too mate and thanks for the good luck wish. As for the board, I hope they will give me some transfer money next summer.
Malhar Bhadbhade
1 января, 2012 at 08:38
hey Johnny,
wow! that certainly looks like a very interesting race to the title. all the best with that. and a very happy new year. hope your next update is sooner, can’t wait to see who wins the title. good luck with the romanian cup too!
Johnny Karp
1 января, 2012 at 13:37
Thanks buddy, hopefully I’ll have the new update ready as soon as possible ;)
Alex
1 января, 2012 at 11:40
Despite the absence of the big name signing I was expecting it was another interesting update to your Romanian journey. The title race looks very tight, hopefully we’ll see you lift the trophy again.
Johnny Karp
1 января, 2012 at 13:38
Thanks Alex, winning the title is crucial at this point if we want to consolidate our position.
Sears
2 января, 2012 at 17:45
It’s so so tight at the top, but I’m sure you’ll win the title. Best of luck!
Johnny Karp
2 января, 2012 at 19:36
Thanks Sears!