My Football Manager Journey - Part 2.
By Howard Hockin | 27 March 2020Part 1 can be found here.
And so in part 2 of my Football Manager journey, having become accustomed to the game, partly, I head into the season proper, full of hope and expectation. I am beginning to fall in love with the game all over again, and am keen to see where I can take my beloved blues.
But not so fast, as there’s a pre-season to finish. I have a tour of Germany to complete, then games against Vallecano. Atletico Madrid and AS Monaco. Plenty of competitive games to get the squad into shape. It goes fairly well, and performances and results improve as I go along, and all the games are won, though the team have to come from behind against Atletico Madrid and AS Monaco. Moving Sterling to the left proves to be a masterstroke as he recovers form and scores a couple of belting goals. The only minus is Zinchenko somehow getting sent off against Hamburg after only 17 minutes. The in-game highlights don’t really portray the apparent savagery of his tackle.
With a £60m budget burning a hole in my pocket, as the team go to a training camp in Liverpool (eh?), I use it all to bid for Real Madrid’s Raphael Varane. One great central defender will do me this summer, after all. I had considered putting John Stones on the transfer market to free money for another player, but he needs to stay. That’s mainly because he is English, and because I need to remember that this is not real life, realistic as it is, and I should not assume his head will go whilst suffering a succession of injuries. As I await Madrid’s response, I gleefully delete loan reports on 26 players (I mean, come on), and then learn that Madrid are willing to do business – for £85m. Interesting. This now means I have to go through a transfer negotiation induction. I am now officially fed up with inductions.
The problem I have is that I don’t have £85m to spend. So there’s only one thing for it – I slap Nicholas Otamendi on the transfer list. I am told I will struggle to get rid of him because of his wage demands (and not because he’s shit), but I’m going to have a damn good try. Sorry Nicholas, I don’t hate you, but it had to be done. Due to needing these extra funds though, I have to stall the Varane negotiations. This probably means United will now express an interest, but they’re managed by a P.E. teacher so I should be OK. It seems that City do take FFP very seriously after all – who knew?!
As I await developments, I realise that the fixture list has been available all along. City’s opening month is quite undemanding – the season starts at home to promoted Aston Villa, followed by away to promoted Sheffield United, then at home to Burnley. The fourth game will be a real test, away to Wolves. A good chance to get points on the board early doors.
Anyway, getting rid of Otamendi was not that difficult, as China calls. Guangzhou bid £26m, which is apparently under his market value of £32m, but it will do me, and what’s more, he wants to go. The deal is done, and I can resume talks over Varane. I accept the fee, and then begin agent talks. Naturally this requires another in-game induction. Varane wants a lot, including a juicy signing-on fee, as does the agent. I can just about afford the package, so bend over backwards and accept all demands. Varane is officially a City player. Nice one. There are concerns about his injury record apparently, but he’s at the right place if so.
The next day, John Stones bruises an ankle.
As the season approaches rapidly, it is time for the Community Shield, against Liverpool. This may be considered a trophy, depending on whether City win or not. Before that though, I raise a few more pennies by selling Mix Diskerud for a few million, my reasoning being I have absolutely no idea who he is. He’s 28 though, so clearly isn’t going to get any better. With that sorted, onto Wembley, where I discover that the Community Shield is indeed a trophy as City come from behind once more to triumph 3-1. Bernardo equalises, then a Foden header puts City ahead before Raheem Sterling rather unrealistically scores against Liverpool. A marker has been put down for the season, apparently.
Either way, it’s always good to beat Liverpool, be it in real life or in a glorified friendly in a computer game. They all count. Now though it’s down to the real business, and the season proper. Time to prove my managerial mettle.
There’s No I In Team
Before we get to the football though, a quick word on my assistant manager, Rodolfo Borrell. He is the key to my success, because quite simply, with every passing week in the game I am getting lazier and lazier, and have thus perfected the art of delegation. Already the press conferences are pissing me off royally. They are an utter waste of time and full of banal, pointless questions – so just like real life then. Sometimes I allow Borrell to take the conferences, and there does not appear to be any downside to doing so. Even if there was, I couldn’t care less. Sadly I cannot escape the press altogether. There are tunnel interviews before some big matches, and occasionally I will be called up to be asked about some youth player I didn’t know existed. In addition, Borrell takes the pre-match tactics team meeting, because I haven’t got the foggiest about what to say. Along with all his other duties, he’s definitely putting in more hours than me.
So onto the season, and Aston Villa at home. If pre-season has told me anything, it is that Football Manager seems to rate Cancelo over Walker and will later feel the same about Zinchenko over Mendy, so those two will get plenty of game time. No chance just yet then to stick Zinchenko in midfield for the Carabao Cup. One day, one day…. there’s three competitive debuts, for Varane, Rodri and Cancelo.
Anyway, Bernardo should score after 43 seconds, but just 2 minutes later Varane heads in at the far post to put City ahead. But hang on, it’s fucking gone to fucking VAR, which is checking for a possible offside. But phew, the goal stands. Laporte gets in on the act with a header of his own after 18 minutes, and City are cruising, despite Villa causing some problems. I am reliably informed that this score puts City into 3rd place in the league –great to know 18 minutes into the season. Jack Grealish is sent off in the 54th minute for two yellow cards, and that is game over, but it remains 2-0, and City are off the mark, in unremarkable fashion. With 21 shots (13 on target), it should have been more than two. Laporte is named MOTM. Elsewhere, Liverpool lose 1-0 at Crystal Palace, so it’s been a good start to proceedings. On the down side, Gundogan picks up an injury, and is out for 4 weeks.
Next up is another promoted side, in the form of Sheffield United (a). As per recent developments in the real world, we all love this club now of course, but there’s little room for sentiment on a warm summer evening. Anyway, will they be as stubborn as they are in real life? The answer is yes, they will be. Despite my attacking mentality, it is not going to be easy to create chances, and worse than that, in the 25th minute Mousset puts the home team ahead. Bramall Lane erupts, I imagine. He was in acres of space, just as he was at the Etihad a few months back. But fear not, as it only take Aguero 2 minutes to equalise, after great work down the right from Cancelo. Sheffield United are creating far too many chances, and Mousset is running City’s defence ragged. I have no idea how to tighten things up, and take the gamble that by maintaining a positive, attacking formation, class will prevail. And that is what happens. On 62 minutes, a Cancelo pile-driver puts City ahead for the first time, and after Mousset sees a shot saved when through 1-on-1, Aguero wraps up the victory in the 88th minute from a Zinchenko cross. 1-3 FT, and the points in the bag after a tough evening in Yorkshire. I’m happy with the victories, but it has clearly not been plain sailing, a pattern that continues as it takes an 86th minute De Bruyne goal to seal victory the week after at home to Burnley. Sign of a title-winning side that, so I’ve heard. There’s clearly a glitch in the game as Sean Dyche says in the post-match press conference that City fully deserved their victory. City are 2nd behind Spurs, and Liverpool are 3 points behind on 6 points. United are 11th, where they belong, with 4 points from 3 games.
Meanwhile, 30 players are called up for international duty, and it’s time for a couple of cup draws. City get Cambridge at home in the Carabao Cup, and I take the Champions League draw seriously by flying over to Monaco with my laptop. City are drawn against Porto, RB Leipzig, and, rather boringly, Dynamo Kiev. Not a bad group, but not a walk in the park either, though walks in the park are a lot harder than they used to be, so maybe that’s no bad thing.
Three games in, and my team has stayed pretty much the same. The formation is 4-1-2-3 or 4-1-4-1, which look the same to me on a screen, but you can guess the shape. Ederson, Zinchenko, Laporte, Varane, Cancelo, Rodri, De Bruyne, Silva x 2, Sterling and Aguero are the favoured starting XI. It is at this point that I suddenly remember that Riyad Mahrez plays for City and he is probably back off his holidays by now. Until now I have not given him a moment’s thought. He is indeed back in Blighty, though not surprisingly is lacking match fitness. I shall try and ease into some game time. Phil Foden is ripping it up in training, and must be considered too, along with Gabriel Jesus. These are good dilemmas to have, and Mendy should be fit soon. The next game will be tough, as it’s a visit to Molineux. This will really test Rodolfo Borrell’s my tactical acumen to the full. It should be a good match.
Until next time……
