Let’s get it started with the Europa League game against Olympiakos, I was looking to get revenge after that rather harsh away win.
Vauxhall vs Olympiakos (Europa League Group I)
Venue: Rivacre Park
Attendance: 7,671
Starting line up: Dean Bouzanis — Julian Marino, Louis Laing, Mervin Simon, Javier Godoy — Leandro Velasco, Radek Vecera, Mark Brown, Andrew Surman — Parana, Pavol Vesely
Team Talk: You can win today!
The players seemed to be keen on getting revenge as well, they started the game very well but we were denied by the crossbar again in the 10th minute. We finally managed to break the deadlock three minutes after the half hour mark, it was a good team move but the goal was quite lucky since it was an opponent who put through his own net. The game was completely in our hands but things took a sad turn for us four minutes before the break, right back Julian Marino was shown a rather harsh second yellow card and left us with 10 men on the pitch. I had to remake my back four so I took out striker Vesely and replaced him with right back Kaka.
Half time score: 1-0
Half time team talk: Pleased.
Half time substitutions: Graham Howson for Vecera, Stephan El Shaarawy for Surman
The numerical disadvantage didn’t seem to count too much though, we were still safely in control of the game and even came close to making it 2-0. We didn’t get the most out of our attacks though and Olympiakos punished us again with a late goal, Kaka made a big mistake there as he failed to play the offside trap along with his three teammates in defense. That mistake cost us two points so Olympiakos were top of the group on 10 points, we were in second spot with 7 points, Koln were third with 6 points while Slavia Sofia were still looking for a point after three games.
Full time team talk: Sympathise.
Man of the match: Leandro Velasco
Flop of the match: Kaka
Match Stats
Video Highlights
Click here to watch the highlights.
And now, the whole batch of five league games. We managed to get back on track against Everton, it was a solid 3-1 win and a pretty good performance since we had 5 clear cut chances. Zé Carlos bagged a brace and Andrew Surman added a late goal, we never looked like losing that game. Then we produced a similar display away against West Ham, Zé Carlos bagged his 10th goal of the season and Parana also got on the score sheet. I couldn’t celebrate that victory though because we had more bad news from the medical staff: Parana sustained a broken foot and is going to be out for no less than four months! It’s a huge blow to lose our best player and I was «Wenger-furious» after the game because the player that broke my lad’s foot didn’t even get a yellow card for that challenge!
Anyway, Pavol Vesely replaced Parana in the next games and he did pretty well, he scored against both Blackburn and Birmingham to take us to five consecutive league wins. Zé Carlos seemed to suffer though, he was unable to score since Parana‘s injury! The game against Birmingham was quite pleasing to watch, we had 70% ball possession and Graham Howson scored a phenomenal goal with a superb free kick shot from 30 yards out (click here to open the video)
The game against Blackpool was a special one for midfielder Mark Brown, he is in some sort of a competition with Mervin Simon and now he is ahead: he played no less than 118 league games for us! He joined the club after our promotion to League One and he has been a very important member of the squad ever since. He has also managed to get into the England Under 21 team, he played 17 games for the Young Lions and hopefully he will make the step towards the main team sometime.
The five consecutive wins pushed us all the way into sixth place, now that’s more like it! We still have a game or two in hand on most of the other teams so I guess we have a good chance of staying in the top six before Christmas. Aston Villa are the surprising leaders after 15 games, they had a very good start to the season and they might even be genuine contenders this season. The three newly-promoted teams seem to be too weak for this league, they might go back to the Championship after just one season.
The last game of the month was an important one, we had a good chance of advancing to the Carling Cup semi finals since we were meeting West Brom in the quarter final, a team that we had just beaten 7-1 in the Premier League. I was sure that the Baggies were having revenge on their minds so I was expecting a more difficult game.
Vauxhall vs West Brom (Carling Cup quarter final)
Venue: Rivacre Park
Attendance: 8,609
Starting line up: Dean Bouzanis — Julian Marino, Javier Godoy, Julian Bazzi, Grant Baddeley — Leandro Velasco, Mark Brown, Graham Howson, Andrew Surman — Zé Carlos, Pavol Vesely
Team Talk: You can win today!
The game was not much different though, we were vastly superior during the first half but goalkeeper Scott Carson denied us time and again. It was quite frustrating but I was sure that we were going to break the deadlock after the interval.
Half time score: 0-0
Half time team talk: We can win this!
Half time substitutions: Stephan El Shaarawy for Velasco
The onslaught continued after the break but so did Carson‘s string of fantastic saves. We finally managed to break the deadlock two minutes after the hour mark on a set piece, Julian Bazzi‘s free kick header bounced off the post but Mervin Simon pushed it home from inside the six yard box. The game was in our hands at that point but we missed another few chances before an unlikely equalizer from West Brom, they scored against the run of play and sent the game into extra time. The added 30 minutes were as frustrating as the previous 90, we continued to dominate but the ball just wouldn’t go in. After such a game I was quite sure that we would lose on penalties and we did, Zé Carlos and Pavol Vesely missed and we were out of the competition. It’s quite painful to lose a game in which you had six clear cut chances and 28 shots but that’s football, it’s unfair sometimes. I was quite worried about Ze Carlos though, he squandered most of our chances and his confidence seemed to be suffering as a result.
Full time team talk: Pleased.
Man of the match: Mervin Simon
Flop of the match: Zé Carlos
Match Stats
Video Highlights
Click here to watch the highlights.
The top five at the end of November is actually a top seven since the last three players have an identical average rating. Parana is still leading and I guess he will be top until his return from injury, his average rating can’t drop now. Zé Carlos is still second but I really hope that he will end the goal drought soon. Julian Bazzi climbed up in third place, this lad is becoming a leader in our defense and his performances are getting better and better. Graham Howson is still in there, he scored a great goal this month and he continues to be our point of reference in midfield. There is fierce competition for the fifth place as defenders Mervin Simon and Louis Laing are threatening Pavol Vesely‘s position, I guess it’s a good thing that we have three defenders playing well so far since Bazzi is ineligible for the Europa League and Javier Godoy was mostly employed as a left back instead of his natural role as a centre back.
December will start with three easy matches, we should be able to get three wins there. Then we’ll meet surprise leaders Aston Villa, that should be an interesting one, before the probable qualifying decider in the Europa League against Koln. Then we’ll have two big tests against Arsenal and Chelsea before meeting Fulham on Boxing Day, Manchester City just two days later and Liverpool on New Year’s Eve. January seems a bit more relaxed but we might have one or two FA Cup games to be added in there.
Before wrapping up I’d like you to see our club’s finances because I’m quite proud of that aspect: we’re still managing to make a profit every month despite the loan payments for the new stadium! I hope that the board will give me some of that money for transfers in January, I have quite a few eager youngsters on my shortlist :)
That’s about it for now folks, thanks a lot for reading and for supporting this website. I’m sure that most of you have already downloaded the FM 2011 Handbook that we released earlier this week but if you didn’t you must not worry, it’s still available here. Looking forward to your comments my friends ;)
Erick Wolf
30 апреля, 2011 at 23:26
What an incredible goal by Howson!
I’m quite impressed with the Motormen and I’m sure that you’ll make it past Köln.
I have a question to ask you though.
I am really interested in writing for this site, but I don’t have FM.
Maybe I could use FIFA, for a change? :o
Johnny Karp
30 апреля, 2011 at 23:37
Thanks for the comment Erick, I hope that Koln will get beaten by Olympiakos and then we’ll have a much easier task. About your proposition, I don’t think I can approve of a FIFA thread on the main site but there definitely could be a place for such a topic in the forum. Let me know if you’re interested and I’ll make a forum category just for you! :)
Erick Wolf
1 мая, 2011 at 00:17
I am definitely interested Johnny. I have now joined the forum as ErickWolf, and I’ll start writing straight away!
Thanks for accepting me.
Johnny Karp
1 мая, 2011 at 10:46
No problem mate, have fun!
Stromson
30 апреля, 2011 at 23:48
Wow, talk about a brutal December schedule (though I have no lack of faith in your ability to see your squad safely through)! I was starting to get a little concerned on the first page, but I should’ve known better. That was an envious November, and I would be pretty surprised to see you fall out of the Europa places at this point. Keep up the great work!
Johnny Karp
1 мая, 2011 at 10:45
I was quite concerned at the end of October too, I was starting to lose faith in some of the lads. It’s good that we bounced back but we still haven’t won any of the «big games» so far.
Darren Smith
1 мая, 2011 at 00:12
Well done Johnny, that’s an amazing set of results. Page two really did showcase your attacking talent but not as much as that first match against WBA, wow what a score line! Great to see the finances are good and I’m still in awe of the two Brazilians!! :) Some good signings in January could secure a top six finish in my opinion. Keep it up mate.
Johnny Karp
1 мая, 2011 at 10:46
Thanks Darren. Unfortunately there will be just one Brazilian for a while, Parana might not be back in action before February…
vikingmarius
1 мая, 2011 at 00:18
Tough luck this month, some disappointing defeats, but you will definately move up the table again, I assure you :P and I have to say you are incredibly unlucky with your cursed LB, I would be extremely frustrated with that type of injury proneness anyway just to hope it gets better
Johnny Karp
1 мая, 2011 at 10:48
Thanks Marius. The strange thing about left back Nikao is that he didn’t seem injury prone when I signed him, his history showed just a pair of minor injuries. Then, after he put pen to paper, he went on a long string of bad knocks.
Excessive
1 мая, 2011 at 00:43
Hey Johnny,
Quite tough for the first but you pulled it out of the bag for the second month with is great to see. Especially now since you have moved up from 14th to 6th! Well done mate, there is a long way yet but if you can carry on that kind of form you will be pushing into that Champions League spot!
Good luck for next month :)
Johnny Karp
1 мая, 2011 at 10:48
Thanks Jake. My main concern is that we’re not getting results against the big teams, that might be a problem if it goes on.
Kevin
1 мая, 2011 at 00:45
Hi Johnny
That’s really bad luck losing Parana like that and four months is quite a bit. Great results in November that put’s you above Man United!! Your December schedule is completely nuts, I hope you can make it through to the end of the year :)
Johnny Karp
1 мая, 2011 at 10:49
Hey Kevin, we’ll try to make it to the end of the year but it will be very tough especially if we’ll be «blessed» with another few injuries…
Alex
1 мая, 2011 at 06:18
Hey Johnny,
Page 1 is not really good, page 2 is more like your usual self :). Parana is a brilliant player, it’s a shame that he is out for a long time. When I saw the league table after November I was shocked by the massive jump from 14th. You will maintain a position in the top 6, hopefully the top 4 :D. Good luck!
Johnny Karp
1 мая, 2011 at 10:50
Hey Alex, the table is still fairly tight so five straight wins can push any team quite a few places up. Thanks for the good luck wish, I’m sure we’re going to need some good fortune :)
vaibhavc
1 мая, 2011 at 06:38
Hey Johnny
October was not that great of a month, but November is the month that we know that you are capable of. Graeme Howson scored an amazing free kick! I would like to see what happens against Aston Villa, I think you can win that one. Parana being injured must be so annoying. Nikao is like Wickham in my Burnley save, he always gets injured when going on international duty.
Johnny Karp
1 мая, 2011 at 10:52
Thanks Vaibhav, this season is pretty tough since we never had a clean bill of health since the very start of it. Howson is one of my favourites, he just pulls those out of the bag when we need it the most! :)
Lye
1 мая, 2011 at 07:18
Hi Johnny,
You have a difficult month in October but you returned with a bang in November. That was a good run of results there. This should be how the motormen should be playing. The team is very unlucky with some injuries to your crucial players but i hope you can hang on as you have other players coming in. Hope you can carry the form over and start challenging at the top. Good luck.
Johnny Karp
1 мая, 2011 at 10:52
Thanks Lye, you know how much injuries can affect a team but I hope to see a clean bill of health at least for a few days this year…
hils
1 мая, 2011 at 07:56
Hi Johnny,hard month there!!!!!!!! Great 7-1 win!!!!!!!!!! Good luck!!!!!!!!
Johnny Karp
1 мая, 2011 at 10:53
Thanks Hils, too bad that 7-1 wasn’t followed by a few other wins :)
CsAtlantis
1 мая, 2011 at 09:33
Those were some tough fixtures Johnny, and you have quite a few injuries too, but good to see you did much better in November, unlucky there with West Brom, sometimes it seems that the opposition goalkeeper does not want to concede no matter what, quite a lot of fixtures in December, hopefully you can cope with the games coming hard and fast
2 games in 3 days (26 december and 28 december) look particularly rough, good luck!
Johnny Karp
1 мая, 2011 at 10:54
Thanks CS. I agree that we were unlucky against West Brom, we should have beaten them quite comfortably. I know, we’ll have the usual Christmas boot-camp, I hope we’ll survive it…
Sayam Khan
1 мая, 2011 at 11:49
Hi Johnny, October wasn’t great but you manahed to make up for it in November. Well Done! Unlucky on Nikao’s injuries, hopefuly he gets back to normal. The loss against West Brom was cruel, but in football, you must take your chances :D Anyway, good luck!
Johnny Karp
1 мая, 2011 at 15:18
I know Sayam, you have to take your chances but sometimes the ball just won’t go in. Thanks for the good luck wish, we’re going to need it!
Laxeyman
1 мая, 2011 at 13:09
November was a great month for you Johnny, I’m sure you’ll go on a run of form now that your players have gelled, November could be the springboard for a great season. You should get through in the Europa League as well, and you surely have a chance of winning that competition. You’ve got a tough month in December, but I’m sure you’ll do well, good luck!
Johnny Karp
1 мая, 2011 at 15:18
Thanks for the confidence Laxeyman, I hope that your predictions will come true :)
lewisjackson130
2 мая, 2011 at 20:50
great story mate, doing extremely well and good luck on the top 4 position.
and im currently trying to sign Ze Carlos- but in my scout report it saying it will be extremely hard to get a work permit,
did you get him straight away and what year in the game did you get him:)
Johnny Karp
2 мая, 2011 at 20:59
Thanks Lewis. Now about Ze Carlos, you are making a mistake there: he is a regen (computer generated player) so you will not be able to find the exact same player in your game. Ze Carlos is a pretty common name in Brazil so I’m sure that you are looking at another player with the same name.
lewisjackson130
2 мая, 2011 at 21:09
Ohh i see i was going to get round to asking what these ‘regens’ are:)
but yeah okay cheers for letting me know this guy i nearly signed is said to be a good signing for leading prem team so would have been great, cheers and good luck:)
Johnny Karp
2 мая, 2011 at 21:13
Well, your Ze Carlos might still be a good player, I couldn’t know because it surely hasn’t the same profile as mine.