Romanian FM 2012 Story: The Unbelievable Journey

Hello boys and girls, it’s finally time for a new episode of my Football Manager 2012 story! As you know we had another solid run in the Champions League group stage, we even managed to beat mighty Real Madrid, but unfortunately we failed to qualify for the knockout rounds of that competition. Finishing third in that group did give us the chance to continue into the Europa League and that was excellent for us as we were hoping to improve last season’s performance when Fenerbahce knocked us out on penalties in the last 16.

Before moving to the Europa League journey I have some transfer news for you, let’s see who came in and who went out:

— First I sold my backup goalkeeper, Xaropinho, because he started complaining about playing more matches. I got no less than 2.2 million pounds for him and spent zero on a replacement as I promoted young Mihai Manecan from the under 19 squad

— Backup centre back Michael Vesely was sold for the same reason, I received 1 million pounds for him and spent nothing on his replacement as Moussa Sane was recalled from loan.

— I felt I needed more quality in midfield and I brought in two lads, both very talented: Hernan Arangio (a bargain at 10,000 pounds!) and Yasen Zlatinski (a bit expensive, 4 million pounds, but that’s because I bought him from a somewhat rival club — FC Vaslui).

Now it’s time to buckle up, the Europa League journey is starting…

Fenerbahce vs Viitorul (Europa League 1st Rnd Leg 1)

Starting Line Up: Hernan Prestia — Lubomir Cerny, Juan Belencoso, Georgica Dicu, Mory Kante — Yasen Zlatinski, Hector Fernandez, Markus Winkler — Zezinho, Rastislav Benko, Daniel Mazzoni

Fenerbahce had a new star in their team compared to that season, it was Leighton Baines himself! As for us, we had to do without Manoel who had picked up an injury during the winter friendlies. The game was totally boring until the 27th minute when the home side managed to carve out a huge chance, luckily the finish hit the post instead of the net. Then we took control of things, we kept possession pretty well but never really looked capable of causing any trouble in the final third. It was an ugly match but the result was pretty good for us.

Match highlights (goals and chances): click here to watch

Viitorul vs Fenerbahce(Europa League 1st Rnd Leg 2)

Starting Line Up: Hernan Prestia — Lubomir Cerny, Juan Belencoso, Georgica Dicu, Mory Kante — Hector Fernandez, Joaozinho, Markus Winkler — Zezinho, Scott Ward, Daniel Mazzoni

We had some problems in attack for the second leg as Manoel was not fully fit yet and Rastislav Benko was suspended so I had to play Ward upfront. We started the game pretty well, managed to get a few shots on target but nothing special. And then… we got lucky! Daniel Mazzoni was held inside the penalty area, the referee pointed to the spot even though it seemed a harsh decision and midfielder Markus Winkler converted from the spot! The Turkish side came close to taking the lead on away goals just three minutes later but we escaped with a bit of help from the woodwork.

The second half was under our control but it was utterly boring as we failed to create any more chances in attack. We could have gotten punished for that during stoppage time when a great volley from the edge of the area forced goalie Hernan Prestia to an awesome save, again with a bit of help from the local carpentry. We moved to the next round but it was after two disappointing matches.

Match highlights (goals and chances): click here to watch

Besiktas had defeated Sporting Lisbon 4-1 on aggregate so we were preparing for another Romanian-Turkish battle in the last 16. (By the way, if you’re into history you might want to read a quick background of the Romanian-Turkish relationship over the ages).

Viitorul vs Besiktas (Europa League 2nd Rnd Leg 1)

Starting Line Up: Hernan Prestia — Ali Amara, Juan Belencoso, Georgica Dicu, Mory Kante — Yasen Zlatinski, Hector Fernandez, Markus Winkler — Zezinho, Rastislav Benko, Daniel Mazzoni

I was hoping to have Manoel back in shape for this match but unfortunately he had suffered yet another injury in a domestic match so I had to do without him for almost two months. As for Besiktas, they had quite a few well-known players like Reto Ziegler, Alan Hutton or Ritchie De Laet. We got off to a nice start this time and we could have broken the deadlock on 19 minutes when Daniel Mazzoni had a good header on target but his effort was saved. We continued to put pressure on our opponents and the reward finally came on 33 minutes when my lads decided to take an unusual corner kick which brought the ball inside the penalty area to Markus Winkler who found the back of the net with a low shot.

The second half continued with the same scenario and we doubled the lead two minutes before the hour mark when Rastislav Benko nodded home on a free kick cross. Our domination continued, there was no reply from the visitors, and we made it 3-0 on another dead ball situation as Benko headed another one home on a corner kick. It was a great result but we still had to be careful, the Turkish sides can cause you loads of problems when they play in front of their very enthusiastic fans.

Match highlights (goals and chances): click here to watch

Besiktas vs Viitorul (Europa League 2nd Rnd Leg 2)

Starting Line Up: Hernan Prestia — Ali Amara, Juan Belencoso, Georgica Dicu, Danut Gongolea — Hernan Arangio, Joaozinho, Markus Winkler — Zezinho, Rastislav Benko, Daniel Mazzoni

I was expecting Besiktas to start pouring forward right away but that didn’t happen, we enjoyed a good spell of domination right from the start and even had a golden opportunity on 20 minutes when the referee awarded us a penalty kick after a foul on Zezinho. Markus Winkler stepped up again to convert from the spot but this time he was way off as he blazed it over the bar. Benko could have made things right four minutes later but he wasted a good chance with a weak shot. We didn’t have reasons to regret those missed chances though as Besiktas were unable to challenge our superiority. We did have something to be sorry about eventually as midfielder Hernan Arangio picked up an injury that was going to keep him sidelined for a whole month.

Match highlights (goals and chances): click here to watch

I would have preferred to meet Olympiakos in the quarter final but we got Valencia instead, not an easy opponent at all. But it could have been worse I guess, Tottenham or Marseille for instance :)

Viitorul vs Valencia (Europa League Quarter Final Leg 1)

Starting Line Up: Hernan Prestia — Lubomir Cerny, Juan Belencoso, Georgica Dicu, Danut Gongolea — Yasen Zlatinski, Hector Fernandez, Markus Winkler — Rastislav Benko, Florian Folea, Zezinho

I have to say that my hopes were rather down before the game and that is because we had many, many absences: Ali Amara suspended plus Scott Ward, Manoel, Daniel Mazzoni and Hernan Arangio injured! With that terrible injury crisis in attack (Mazzoni out for 3 months!) I had to add another striker to my ranks and I decided to recall Folea from loan and send him straight into the starting eleven… As for Valencia, they had knocked out strong teams like Schalke and Aston Villa and they had a good pair of wingers to rely on: Pablo Piatti on the left side and Matias Ezequiel Schelotto on the right.

The opening minutes of the match were rather quiet but we managed to create a chance on 16 minutes, quite a big chance. Unfortunately it fell to young Florian Folea and his finish was diverted behind by the goalkeeper. Then the game fell into nearly total boredom until 15 minutes from time when Valencia had a huge chance but the score remained intact thanks to the crossbar. The Spaniards dominated the final 10 minutes of the match but we managed to hold out for the draw. Not a very good result for a home leg but at least it kept us in with a slight chance.

Match highlights (goals and chances): click here to watch

Valencia vs Viitorul (Europa League Quarter Final Leg 2)

Starting Line Up: Hernan Prestia — Ali Amara, Juan Belencoso, Georgica Dicu, Mory Kante — Yasen Zlatinski, Hector Fernandez, Markus Winkler — Rastislav Benko, Roman Benes, Zezinho

We had the same absences before the second leg except Amara who had served his suspension. Valencia started the game well, they appeared keen on scoring in front of their home crowd, but we defended well and nearly silenced their fans on 31 minutes when Zezinho squandered a huge chance. That opportunity gave us a bit more courage and we controlled the remainder of the first half.

We started playing even better after the break, we enjoyed a good spell of domination but sadly we were unable to create any big chances. Our good performance was rewarded though, that happened 15 minutes from time when Roman Benes headed home on a corner kick! That was totally unexpected for Valencia and they couldn’t even react as we managed to keep possession very well through the final minutes of the match. Things were settled six minutes before the final whistle when Valencia‘s left back picked up a second yellow and headed for the showers earlier that he would have wanted to. We advanced to the semi finals in a rather unexpected fashion, I honestly wasn’t expecting us to beat Valencia away. All I was hoping for was to reach the penalty shoot-out…

Match highlights (goals and chances): click here to watch

We were going to face an even better team in the semi final: Olympique Marseille. The French team had thrashed Zenit in the quarter finals but they had a rather tricky encounter with Stuttgart earlier in the competition.

Marseille vs Viitorul (Europa League Semi Final Leg 1)

Starting Line Up: Hernan Prestia — Ali Amara, Juan Belencoso, Georgica Dicu, Mory Kante — Yasen Zlatinski, Hector Fernandez, Markus Winkler — Rastislav Benko, Manoel, Zezinho

Some of our injured players had recovered, we had just two names left on the unavailable list: Mazzoni and Ward. On the other hand Marseille seemed the best team we had faced up to that point with an undeniable star upfront in Jordan Ayew and a great talent right behind him, Miralem Sulejmani. I was hoping for a draw or at least a narrow defeat but the first half was a total nightmare: Jordan Ayew scored no less than four goals before the interval, all of them superb goals… My boys were totally overwhelmed and Marseille could have easily scored two more goals on set pieces.

Our only solid reaction was two minutes into the second half when Markus Winkler had a great chance inside the penalty area but squandered it with a dismal effort. However, we managed to stop the onslaught in the second half even though Marseille had another chance on 63 minutes when our goalie pulled off a good save to keep the score intact. There was a huge difference between the two teams, especially in the first half, and our Europa League journey seemed to have finished in a rather shameful way.

Match highlights (goals and chances): click here to watch

I thought that our run in Europe was coming to an end just before the final and I guess you can’t blame me for giving up hope after getting beaten 4-0 in the first leg, right? I had no expectations from the second leg, I was just hoping to win the match in order to make our exit a bit less bitter. Well, move on to the next page if you want to be totally shocked…

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

When an important match comes up in my game I take my FMS Journal and write down the starting eleven, absences, considerations before the match and then the important events of the match itself. This time I didn’t bother simply because, as I already said, I thought that we had no chance of beating Marseille on aggregate. Well… I’m just going to write down the important events of the match and how I felt at the time.

5th minute — Rastislav Benko powers in a low shot, 1-0! That’s good, I thought, we might win this second leg and maybe give another boost to our coefficient.

11th minute — Georgica Dicu‘s corner kick header bounces off the crossbar! Damn, if this one would have gone in then maybe…

23rd minute — Benko scores his second of the game on a free kick! 2-0! Can we do it?

32nd minute — Manoel plays a great pass for Zezinho who wraps up the move with a cool finish, 3-0! Really?

38th minute — fine move rounded off by Manoel with a cool finish into the bottom corner, 4-0! All square on aggregate! Am I dreaming?

55th minute — Zezinho serves Manoel with a fine pass and it’s 5-0! It’s a frickin’ miracle!

64th minute — excellent counter attack move, Benko is clean through and slots it home! 6-0! I obviously don’t know anything about football!

68th minute — another huge chance on a counter but Yasen Zlatinski misses it…

73rd minute — huge gaffe in Marseille‘s defence, Zezinho says thanks and bags it. 7-0!

89th minute — Zezinho wraps up his hat-trick with a fine solo effort. 8-0!

Match highlights (goals and chances): click here to watch

As you can see from the stats we had totally outplayed Marseille in the second leg but I still don’t know how that happened. Was it a miracle? I guess so. Was it a bug in the game? Could be, but if it was then it’s the best bug I’ve ever encountered :)

And we were through to the final, where we were going to face Dortmund. The Germans had a fairly smooth ride to the final as they conceded just one goal in the last three ties.

Viitorul vs Dortmund (Europa League Final)

Starting Line Up: Hernan Prestia — Ali Amara, Juan Belencoso, Georgica Dicu, Danut Gongolea — Yasen Zlatinski, Hector Fernandez, Markus Winkler — Rastislav Benko, Manoel, Zezinho

We had two lads injured before the final, Mazzoni and left back Mory Kante. Dortmund‘s team seemed quite solid with Götze the undeniable star.

This time my notebook was prepared on my desk, here’s what I have wrote down during the match:

5th minute — fine move from my lads, right back Amara decides to shoot from 20 yards but it goes well wide.

7th minute — Dortmund right winger Orellana gets booked.

7th minute — Dortmund on the breakaway, decent chance but the finish is poor, high and wide.

8th minute — great pass from Zezinho for Benko, he’s clean through inside the area… but he fires just wide!

13th minute — Dortmund corner kick… header… over the bar.

27th minute — first shot on target, Manoel hit it from the edge of the area but the goalkeeper saved it easily.

30th minute — good move again from my lads, Manoel receives it inside the area… but he shoots straight at the keeper…

35th minute — Yasen Zlatinski is booked

39th minute — Dortmund left back Schmeltzer gets booked.

40th minute — great run from Manoel, he breaks into the area and powers a low shot… it’s in! 1-0 Viitorul, come on lads!

42nd minute — free kick cross from Dortmund, Amara heads it clear and it falls to Danut Gongolea inside our own half… He beats his opponent and starts running like crazy… Nobody can catch him… He’s one-on-one with the goalie… And scores! What a goal, unbelievable! Gongolea was like Gareth Bale for a few seconds!

44th minute — it seemed offside… but it wasn’t, Dortmund are back into the game. 2-1.

45 + 1 — great cross from Winkler finds Benko unmarked at the edge of the six yard box… What??? He fires wide… How did he miss that?

45 + 2 — Winkler does damage again, great pass for Manoel inside the penalty area… but his shot goes just wide…

Half time stats

We should have been at least two or three goals up at half time, that’s what I see from the stats… Anyway, I decided to take off Zlatinski at the break because he was booked and replace him with Joaozinho.

52nd minute — Dortmund have a good effort from the edge of the area, just wide.

54th minute — Hector Fernandez gets booked.

63rd minute — Lubomir Cerny for Gongolea, the left back seemed quite tired.

66th minute — good work from Zezinho, crosses inside for Benko but his header goes well over the bar.

67th minute — Zezinho does some great work again, squares it for Winkler but the shot is straight at the keeper.

78th minute — Roman Benes in for Manoel who had picked up a slight injury.

82nd minute — awesome shot from distance for Dortmund, it cannons off the crossbar! I think my heart stopped for a second there…

90th minute — no less than 5 minutes of added time indicated! Come on, ref…

90 + 3 — Zezinho gets booked. Come on lads, just keep that ball…

96 minutes and 1 second — it’s over!

Match highlights (goals and chances): click here to watch

Can you believe it? I honestly still can’t, especially after that amazing semi final. The final was ours though, we surely deserved to win that match.

Now let’s see what happened back home, first in the Liga 1. Well, we secured the title with four games to spare, that’s just before the Europa League final. Unfortunately we didn’t manage to remain unbeaten as we suffered a rather weird home defeat.

Anyway, we grabbed 87 points this time and that’s more than we ever had before.

The Romanian Cup was even easier as we faced Second Division teams both in the semi final and the final. Too easy.

Manoel was the man of the season this time, not only because he scored in the Europa League final. He scored 24 goals and provided no less than 23 assist, that’s by far his best record so far. And by the way, he has just received the Romanian citizenship :) A special note goes to Hernan Arangio, the young Argentinian midfielder, the lad has scored five goals in seven starts and I believe he will become a huge player for this club.

The financial report looks better than ever too, we have no less than 16 million in the bank! We might need every penny though because I want to extend the contracts of my most important players and they will probably want much bigger wages now that they are famous all over Europe :)

That’s how it was my friends, I still can’t believe it :) Can you?