The first game of the month was one of the most frustrating of the season, Sunderland parked the bus and although we kept piling on the pressure we were unlucky to get just one point after being denied by the woodwork on two occasions. The Carling Cup quarter final was fairly easy, I sent in the backup players against Wolves and they were good enough to see off the opponents. Unfortunately Ibrahima MBow picked up an injury and was going to spend the next three weeks on the sidelines.
Our League Cup luck continued in the semi finals draw, we avoided both Arsenal and Manchester United and we’re going to play against Bolton as favorites to reach the final.
Back to the Premier League now, the first big test of the month was coming up: Arsenal at Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal vs Vauxhall (Premier League)
Venue: Emirates Stadium
Attendance: 53,120
Starting line up: Luis Guilherme — Julian Marino, Kwabena Quartey, Javier Godoy, Hans Larsson — Leandro Velasco, Radek Vecera, Tinga, Tiago — Parana, Zé Carlos
Team Talk: You can win today!
The initial half hour saw a fairly even game with both sides trying to control the match but not really succeeding. Arsenal had the first big chance on 30 minutes but Luis Guilherme did his job again to keep the score level while Mervin Simon came off the bench six minutes later to replace injured Godoy. We had our own good chance just before the break, a good cross found Zé Carlos unmarked inside the six yard box but the striker headed disappointingly over the crossbar.
Half time score: 0-0
Half time team talk: You can win today!
Half time substitutions: Pierre Touya for Marino
The second start started brightly for us: first Parana hit the post on 52 minutes and then we broke the deadlock two minutes later when left back Pierre Touya fed a good ball forward to Leandro Velasco and the winger coolly slotted home from just inside the penalty area. Arsenal started to look for the equalizer but my lads were defending just like I want them to: defending through superior ball possession. Arsenal didn’t create any chances before injury time but they could have clinched a last-gasp equalizer when substitute Bendtner tested Luis Guilherme but my goalie was on hand again to keep the three points in our account.
Full time team talk: Well done!
Man of the match: Leandro Velasco
Flop of the match: Parana
Match Stats
Video Highlights
Click here to watch the highlights.
The final Champions League group match was coming up and I was sure of the win so I chose to send in even some youngsters from the reserves squad. Luckily one of them, striker Alan Phillips, celebrated his debut with a fine hat-trick!
We finished second behind Inter and I guess that’s the most that we could have expected on our Champions League debut.
I was expecting a tough draw for the first knockout round but we got lucky again, we avoided the likes of Barcelona and Juventus and we will meet German side Hamburg. We’re not favorites but I guess we have a good chance of pulling through.
Back to the Premier League again, we had four more games to play before the end of the year. First, two easy ones. Well, not that easy since West Brom held us to a 1-1 draw, a result that the Baggies thoroughly deserved. Then we bounced back against Blackpool, a much better performance and a good 3-0 result.
The draw against West Brom was costly, we dropped into second place and Manchester City were two points ahead of us before the direct clash. I was looking forward to meet Jose Mourinho for the first time in my career… :)
Manchester City vs Vauxhall (Premier League)
Venue: The City Of Manchester Stadium
Attendance: 46,903
Starting line up: Luis Guilherme — Kwabena Quartey, Javier Godoy, Louis Laing, Pierre Touya — Leandro Velasco, Radek Vecera, Tinga, Andrew Surman — Parana, Zé Carlos
Team Talk: For the fans!
The initial minutes of the game were unbelievably quiet, the match didn’t look like a derby at all. Unfortunately Manchester City managed to break the deadlock after 14 minutes on a corner kick and that sparked life into the dispute. My lads reacted well, we started pushing forward but we wasted three great chances through Surman, Ze Carlos and Paranà. I was quite disappointed with the finishing, we had to do better if we wanted the title!
Half time score: 1-0
Half time team talk: I want to see more from you!
Half time substitutions: Abdallah Yaisien for Velasco, Graham Howson for Vecera
I was hoping to see a similar display from my team plus some better finishing in the second half but my plan could have been undone after just two minutes when Man City squandered a huge chance. We were lucky to survive that and thankfully we punished the home side on 54 minutes when Louis Laing headed home a free kick cross from substitute Howson. That goal gave us wings, we started to play beautifully and could have scored again on the hour mark but Joe Hart pulled off an amazing save on Zé Carlos. A couple of minutes later Laing hit the crossbar on a corner kick but things seemed to turn our way on 64 minutes when Man City centre back David Luiz got sent off for elbowing Tinga in the face. Mourinho pulled his team back to defend the 1-1 scoreline while I had to send in Wellington Paulista for injured Zé Carlos. We continued to press forward even without our best striker and the reward finally came five minutes from time: Abdallah Yaisien was denied by the keeper, the ball bounced loose toward Parana but he was brought down by a defender, the ball was still loose and substitute Paulista seized the opportunity and blasted home! Get in! Strangely enough, Mr. Mourinho didn’t complain about that red card after the game :)
Full time team talk: Great comeback!
Man of the match: Louis Laing
Flop of the match: Leandro Velasco
Match Stats
Video Highlights
Click here to watch the highlights.
Vauxhall vs Liverpool (Premier League)
Venue: Rivacre Park
Attendance: 10,266 (sold out)
Starting line up: Luis Guilherme — Julian Marino, Javier Godoy, Louis Laing, Hans Larsson — Leandro Velasco, Radek Vecera, Tinga, Tiago — Parana, Zé Carlos
Team Talk: You can win today!
The last match of the year 2017, a tough one at home against 5th placed Liverpool. The game started well for us, my lads were displaying the usual attacking flavor, and things got even better after just 14 minutes when Shawcross got sent off for a professional foul on Zé Carlos. We continued to press forward in search of the opening goal but there was no way past a brilliant Reina. We did beat them on 27 minutes, Leandro Velasco put a diving header past the goalie, but the ball bounced back off the post. And we got punished… Liverpool took the lead with a great shot from distance and then controlled the game until the half time whistle. I wanted to see more determination from my boys, we were better than our opponents but we were just not determined enough to prove it!
Half time score: 0-1
Half time team talk: Where’s the passion, lads?
Half time substitutions: Abdallah Yaisien for Vecera, Graham Howson for Tinga, Javier Garcia for Tiago
Our efforts were finally rewarded on 54 minutes when Garcia headed on a Velasco cross into the path of Zé Carlos who fired home but we needed the three points, not just one. We kept on trying but the Liverpool defense was rock-solid, there was no way past them. We should have done more, I know that we could have done more…
Full time team talk: Not good enough!
Man of the match: Zé Carlos
Flop of the match: Leandro Velasco
Match Stats
Video Highlights
Click here to watch the highlights.
Here’s a quick recap of our Premier League results so far: just one defeat in 18 games but we dropped a few important points in November and December.
Manchester City got beaten at West Brom in the last game of the year so we retained the top spot but that’s only because Tottenham had a game postponed. However, we are fighting for the title and that’s what I wanted to achieve. I don’t know if we’ll win it but we’ll surely fight for it until the very last day of the season.
Now let’s have a look at the player starts at the halfway mark of the season. First I have to say that our squad is now reduced to 26 players as I decided to sell Pavol Vesely, I got 9.75 million pounds for him and I don’t regret that choice since he was a backup player. I can add that the squad will be reduced to 25 players come January as I want to offload left winger Andrew Surman, he did great last season but I don’t think he can help us anymore given his age. And now, the stats! Zé Carlos is by far our best goalscorer, he bagged 18 goals and he could have added quite a few more since he wasn’t short on chances by any means. Leandro Velasco is doing a pretty good job again with 5 goals and 10 assists but his performances were not too good lately, I don’t know why. I have to mention our English centre backs, Louis Laing and Mervin Simon, they have done a great job so far even though Simon had a few disappointing displays at the back. The biggest new asset for the team is between the sticks, Luis Guilherme was outstanding so far and I believe that we won’t have to look for another keeper anytime soon. Two players disappointed me overall: right back Julian Marino who has a much lower average rating than last season (I can’t figure out the cause yet) and Parana, the Brazilian striker that has scored just seven goals until now (I know that he can do a lot better but he’s struggling to end a goal drought…).
January and February will be crucial for our title challenge as we will meet second placed Tottenham twice and we’ll also have to face the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United. I am also looking forward to the Carling Cup semi final, we should get past Bolton and then meet either Arsenal or Man Utd in the final. And last but not least, we’ll end the month of February with the first leg of the Champions League tie against Hamburg, we’ll have to win that first leg if we want to qualify.
Thanks a lot for reading my friends, feel free to add your comments and requests!
Sibo
21 мая, 2011 at 19:32
Well done Johnny!
Some fine form these last two months and it is great to see you fighting for honours as January approaches, I am sure you will be fighting for the title until the bitter end and I also think you will win some trophies (League & FA Cup) this season, as well as having a good crack at the Champion’s League!
Well done and good luck! :D
Johnny Karp
21 мая, 2011 at 22:41
Thanks Sibo. I don’t know about the Champions League but we should compete for the other three.
Laxeyman
21 мая, 2011 at 20:45
Great form Johnny, you’re in a great position in the league, and I reckon you will beat Hamburg. The title race will be close, but I think you’ve got what it takes. Good luck!
Johnny Karp
21 мая, 2011 at 22:41
Thanks Laxeyman, I hope you’re right!
Erick Wolf
21 мая, 2011 at 21:23
It’s nice to see that the Motormen are storming the EPL with their football. 1st place, in front of the likes of Arsenal, United and City is a respectable achievement.
I won’t be able to write the Oxford story anymore though.
No Internet = no uploading goals = no highlights = no fun.
Maybe when the next FIFa come out, or when I get FM12
Johnny Karp
21 мая, 2011 at 22:42
Thanks Erick. I hope that your internet problems will be solved sooner or later.
Kevin
21 мая, 2011 at 22:00
Hi Johnny
Delightful win over Man City and congrats in moving forward in the Champions League which given your opponents in the next round you stand a chance at least. The EPL is very tight though I feel if Parana finds the net again on a consistent basis you could pull away. Your January schedule is nuts with back to back games to start with and I see there’s an all important game with Spurs coming up. Well done and good luck!
Johnny Karp
21 мая, 2011 at 22:43
Thanks Kevin. The January schedule is insane indeed but I hope that our squad depth will see us through.
Darren Smith
21 мая, 2011 at 22:40
Another great update Johnny. Stunning victories over Arsenal and City bode well for the future. If your lads can perform like that for the rest of the season you’ll win the league. I do think the League Cup offers some silverware too, great to see Vauxhall challenging on all fronts. I think your team could surprise you in the Champions League. ;)
Johnny Karp
21 мая, 2011 at 22:48
Thanks Darren. I think that we can push for the league and the domestic cups but since Inter beat us home and away I don’t believe that we can take the big European teams yet.
CsAtlantis
22 мая, 2011 at 01:52
Very good away wins against Man City and Arsenal, good to see that you rejected the temptation of money :P, sitting very nicely at the top, though Tottenham have a game in hand so you need to watch out for the chasing pack
Compared to some of the other teams you could have drawn, i’ll say Hamburg is a good draw, good luck in the league and Champions League
Velasco’s doing well, lots of dribbles and good overall performances with 4 MoMs
Johnny Karp
22 мая, 2011 at 07:53
Thanks CS. Velasco is a great player, he rarely loses the ball and most times he does something useful with it. We’re going to meet Tottenham twice in these two months so I guess the situation is in our hands, we’ll have to beat them if we want to stay top.
Excessive
22 мая, 2011 at 10:51
Excellent mate, that is really something! Getting the lads into the knockout stages is your biggest achievement to date with them and you must be chuffed that you find yourself this far after only 6-7 seasons?! Magic mate, you have done a brilliant job :)
Good luck with the results next update, you’ll keep that top spot no problem, even against Man City and Jose ;)
Johnny Karp
22 мая, 2011 at 17:21
Thanks mate, beating Jose was a nice bonus :)
Ana Garcia
22 мая, 2011 at 11:47
Wow! Man City offered you £50k a week, imagine if that was in real life…..
That said money doesn’t make you happy so you did well to reject that offer! Well done it getting through the group stages the extra money from the champions league will really help in the long run.
HSV (Hamburg I think?) Isnt the worst tie for you and over two legs you might be able to beat them.The league looks very tight but you have been a good run of results so am hoping you can continue.
Good luck Johnny! :)
Johnny Karp
22 мая, 2011 at 17:22
Thanks Ana. I’ll never get 50K per week in real life, I don’t even dream of something like that :)
Sayam Khan
22 мая, 2011 at 12:47
Hi Johnny, excellent results so far… I think you will be able to win the League Cup and knock Hamburger out of the CL. I’m experiencing a similar thing with Parana with a striker in my story as well ;-) Excellent wins over City and Arsenal? Are Arsenal easier to beat in your save?
Johnny Karp
22 мая, 2011 at 17:23
Thanks Sayam. I did have a few good results against Arsenal but I won’t say that they are easy to beat or easier compared to other saves.
Sears
22 мая, 2011 at 12:57
Terrific stuff Johnny, great to see you leading the Premier League and also exceeding expectations in the Premier League. Good luck!
Johnny Karp
22 мая, 2011 at 17:23
Thanks Sears.
vaibhavc
22 мая, 2011 at 13:31
Hey Johnny
Great form puts you in a great position in the league. You are exceeding expectations a lot in the Prem, but no one is complaining! You have a lot of game in the next two months, hopefully your team maintains their winning streak there.
Johnny Karp
22 мая, 2011 at 17:24
Thanks Vaibhav. I’d say that I was expecting the team to be around the first position but I guess they did even better than I had expected.
vikingmarius
22 мая, 2011 at 14:13
Great games here Johnny, some very good wins against both City and Arsenal and you have done well in a difficult champions league group, but do not underestimate Hamburg, are they better than before or like the same level as the beginning of the game?
Johnny Karp
22 мая, 2011 at 17:25
Thanks Marius. I didn’t study Hamburg’s squad yet but they qualified from a much easier group, there was Benfica in second place if I remember correctly.
Mariano
22 мая, 2011 at 23:32
Hi Johnny,
I had to return to Argentina and been very busy during the last month, It seems I missed a season from the Motormen as I recall you were qualified for Europa League….
You are doing amazing with the resources you´ve got, and also bit lucky to have Hamburg after finishing 2nd in your group:)
I did 4 seasons already in premier with Havant and though I always qualified for Champions I haven´t won the Premiership.
When you games with one or two days in between, do you rest your players?
Do you make them play if they are under 90%?
Have a nice week and let´s hope BNC and Man U play a great game next week!
Johnny Karp
22 мая, 2011 at 23:42
Hey Mariano, nice to hear from you! We have won the Europa League and the UEFA Super Cup in the meantime :) To answer your question, I always try to avoid employing players with condition under 90 percent so I rotate them if possible when we have a packed schedule. I’m looking forward to the CL final too, it should be an entertaining match.
Lye
23 мая, 2011 at 01:52
Hi Johnny,
That’s a great run of results, beating most of your closest rivals. If you can maintain the good record, i don’t see why you can’t win the title this season.
You stand a high chance of brushing off Hamburg and i hope the draw will continue to be kind for you. Good luck.
Stromson
23 мая, 2011 at 15:37
Great results, as always my friend. I’m looking forward to how the league title race pans out, and you should be able to get through Hamburg for the next round of the CL. Good luck!
Johnny Karp
23 мая, 2011 at 15:44
Thanks mate, the title race will be quite hot but I hope we’re good enough to fight right till the end.
Reasoner
23 мая, 2011 at 19:16
I really like your stories John (Getting up to the part at mid Dorchester in the begineeing.)
Good results and good read, I am sorry my black cats team didn’t play aggressive :( One look at your team and they probably thought screw it :X
I only play fm2009, but is Vaclav Kadlec still a prospect in the future games ?
Johnny Karp
23 мая, 2011 at 19:25
Thanks for the comment mate and for taking the time to read the older stories. About Kadlec, he still is a great player to buy in FM 2011 and, from what I can remember, he was very good in FM 2010 as well.
Liam
25 мая, 2011 at 18:07
I know its random to just pop up but i think you might want to get some experience in your squad, sorry to be picky! i managed luton to the prem league and won the league with them for 5 seasons on the trot plus the champ league. good luck
Johnny Karp
25 мая, 2011 at 18:11
It’s not random at all Liam and I don’t think that you are picky. I know that I need some experienced players as well but what I want to do at the moment is build a solid base for the future, that is my strategy. In the future seasons I will try to bring in some established players as well, that is if the transfer budget will allow me to :) I won’t bring anybody over 30 though, at least that’s what I think now.