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Season: 2010/11
League: Premier League
Position: 14th
Played: 38
Points: 40
Top Scorer: Steven Fletcher (11)
Highest Avg. Rating: Steven Fletcher (7.21)
Fans Player of the Year: Steven Fletcher
Major Ins: Steven Fletcher (£5.5 million, from Hibernian), Hossam Ghaly (Free), Liam Rosenoir (Free, from Reading), Emerse Fae (Free, from Reading), Emmerson Boyce (Free, from Wigan), Marton Fulop (Free, from Sunderland), Federico Macheda (Free, from Manchester United), Junior Stanislas (£230,000, from West Ham), Enrico Alfonso (£60,000, from Inter), Keirrison (£4 million, from Coritiba), Chris Eagles (£500,000, from Burnley)
Major Outs: Amaury Bischoff (£3 million, to Toulouse), Lewis McGugan (£2.5 million, to Reading), Andy Robinson (£120,000, to Plymouth), Peter Sweeney (£250,000, to Blackpool), Chris Killen (£350,000, to Norwich), Kevin Kyle (£300,000, to Peterborough), Eric Odhiambo (£150,000, to Bradford)
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Season: 2009/10
League: Championship
Position: 3rd (Promoted Via Play-Offs)
Played: 46
Points: 92
Top Scorer: Jermaine Beckford (25)
Highest Avg. Rating: Jermaine Beckford (7.30)
Fans Player of the Year: Leroy Lita
Major Ins: Ronaldo (£100,000, from Botafogo), Steve Irwin (£1 million, from Liverpool), Lewis McGugan (£110,000, from Notts Forest), Keith Southern (£375,000, from Blackpool), Kevin Kyle (Free, from Coventry), Chris Killen (£400,000, from Celtic), Amaury Bischoff (Free, from Arsenal), Leroy Lita (Free), Lukasz Zaluska (£1.1 million, from Dundee United), Eric Odhiambo (Free), Adam Bodgan (Loan, from Bolton), Henri Lansbury (Loan, from Arsenal), Giles Barnes (£250,000, from Sheffield United)
Major Outs: Luciano Becchio (£500,000, to Burnley), Casper Ankergren (£2 million, to Aston Villa), Enoch Showunmi (£75,000, to Norwich), David Prutton (£250,000, to QPR), Tresor Kandol (£900,000, to Brighton), Paul Telfer (Free, to Wrexham), Ben Parker (£200,000, to Bradford), Scott Gardner (£20,000, to Exeter City), Owen Price (£35,000, to Exeter City)
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Season: 2008/09
League: League One
Position: 1st
Played: 46
Points: 113
Top Scorer: Jermaine Beckford (24)
Highest Avg. Rating: Alan Sheehan (7.17)
Fans Player of the Year: Alan Sheehan
Major Ins: Stephen Carr (Free), Brian Murphy (£16,000, from Bohemians), Federico Macheda (Loan), Henri Lansbury (Loan), Rhys Murphy (Loan), Owen Price (Free)
Major Outs: Andy Hughes (£40,000, to Sheffield Wednesday), David Lucas (£26,000 to Man City), Jonathan Douglas (£150,000 to Coventry), Neil Kilkenny (£475,000, to West Brom), Rui Marques (£250,000, to Birmingham City)
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Macheda and Drinkwater Brought in on Loan
Fabio, Sanchez Watt, and Gerardo Bruno all failed to make an impact when I signed them on short term loans for Leeds, so they’ve returned to their respective clubs and I’ve now brought in Manchester United duo Daniel Drinkwater and Federico Macheda on loan until the end of the season.
I first discovered Macheda whilst managing Huddersfield Town back in December, and I got a good couple of seasons out of him in League One, so decided to give him a try with my Leeds team. Drinkwater is a player that I’ve not experimented with in Football Manager before, he had a few League One teams after him on loan though, and he had some promising stats, so I thought I’d bring him into the team to see what he can offer (wage contribution is 0%, so there’s nothing to lose even if he does turn out to be a bit of a flop).
The season has started well for my Leeds United team, and hopefully as the season progresses I can continue to march towards the Championship.
I first discovered Macheda whilst managing Huddersfield Town back in December, and I got a good couple of seasons out of him in League One, so decided to give him a try with my Leeds team. Drinkwater is a player that I’ve not experimented with in Football Manager before, he had a few League One teams after him on loan though, and he had some promising stats, so I thought I’d bring him into the team to see what he can offer (wage contribution is 0%, so there’s nothing to lose even if he does turn out to be a bit of a flop).
The season has started well for my Leeds United team, and hopefully as the season progresses I can continue to march towards the Championship.
The Start of the Leeds United Story
Having won every competition possible and been the best team in England for over a decade with Manchester City; I’ve finally decided to start a new career in Football Manager, and have this time chosen Leeds United as my football team of choice.
The aim is to get promoted from League One in the first season, to achieve a respectable position in my first season in the Championship, and to win promotion to the Premier League by season five.
I’ve already made a few moves in the transfer window, signing Stephen Carr, Owen Price, and Alessio Tacchinardi, all on free transfers, and have also secured the services of Henri Lansbury on a season-long loan from Arsenal. Fabio (Manchester United), Sanchez Watt (Arsenal), and Gerardo Bruna (Liverpool) have all been signed on short term loans, and if they impress in their initial 3 month spells then there’s a possibility that one or two of those will be playing for the club on a more long term basis also.
The board want me to win the league, I want the team to win the league, and with the squad that we’ve got I feel that there’s a very strong chance that we shall indeed finish the season as champions.
I’ll be updating the Leeds United story as the season progresses, and hopefully my first season in charge of the popular League One club will be a successful one.
Carlos Vela in Football Manager 2009
In Football Manager 2009, Arsenal's Carlos Vela is most definitely a player that is well worth signing. After a couple of seasons in the game he begins to start scoring a lot of goals, and if you’re giving him a regular place in the starting eleven then he should become a consistent 20 goal a season striker.Consistently averaging higher than a 7 rating for the season, Carlos Vela is an incredibly high quality player, and one that will no doubt enhance the overall quality of your team if you sign him.
Carlos Vela is young, talented and skilful, and if you’ve got a decent transfer budget then Carlos Vela is without doubt a player to try and sign.
Nearly Time to Start Afresh
The time has nearly come for me to start a new career in Football Manager. It’s been a fun time managing Manchester City, halfway through my seventeenth season in charge however and the novelty of being able to buy anyone I want is beginning to wear a little thin.
Cristiano Ronaldo has come and gone, so too have the likes of Wayne Rooney, Carlos Tevez, and Kaka, and with more than 3 billion pounds having been spent out on players; I’m now well on my way to my twelfth consecutive Premier League title.
It really is all too easy, and I feel that the time has come to return to managing a team from the lower levels of English football.
Leeds United may well be my team of choice; a League One team with ambitions of returning to the Premier League. Alternatively I may opt to manage a side from the Blue Square North or South, and set myself a five year plan to take them to the Football League.
Whichever team I choose to manage I’ll hopefully be able to achieve success with, having been used to the Football Manager easy life for the last few months however I know that suddenly adapting my approach is not going to be easy.
Cristiano Ronaldo has come and gone, so too have the likes of Wayne Rooney, Carlos Tevez, and Kaka, and with more than 3 billion pounds having been spent out on players; I’m now well on my way to my twelfth consecutive Premier League title.
It really is all too easy, and I feel that the time has come to return to managing a team from the lower levels of English football.
Leeds United may well be my team of choice; a League One team with ambitions of returning to the Premier League. Alternatively I may opt to manage a side from the Blue Square North or South, and set myself a five year plan to take them to the Football League.
Whichever team I choose to manage I’ll hopefully be able to achieve success with, having been used to the Football Manager easy life for the last few months however I know that suddenly adapting my approach is not going to be easy.
About
A blog about Football Manager; providing tips about who to sign, who not to sign, and offering general advice and information about the fantastic game that is Football Manager.
I'll here be detailing my own personal experiences with Football Manager in as much detail as possible, and will from time to time tackle other subjects also.
I'll here be detailing my own personal experiences with Football Manager in as much detail as possible, and will from time to time tackle other subjects also.
Promoted to League One
I always thought that my team was going to hit a patch of bad form and lose the title, but that never happened; I won League Two with Havant & Waterlooville, and have gained promotion to League One.
The media prediction is that we’ll finish bottom of League One, I really don't see that happening when we so comfortably won League Two though, and feel it’s far more likely that we'll finish mid-table. I doubt we'll make the play-offs (although it would be lovely for that to happen), I do think that we'll survive for a second season in League One though, and am of the belief that my squad is strong enough to survive by some distance and provide a few upsets along the way.
It’s unlikely that I’ll ever take my team to the Premier League, I think that it’s possible to reach the Championship in the next few seasons though, and having taken charge of the club in the Blue Square South; I don’t think that’s too bad an achievement at all!
Second Season in League Two Going Strong
Just over halfway through my second season in League Two with Havant & Waterlooville and things are going incredibly well. My team is top, 3 points ahead of second, and 7 points clear of 4th. It looks promising that this season I shall win promotion to League One, and all of the signings that I made at the beginning of the season are doing me proud. I mainly concentrated on defence, and brought in a new goalkeeper also, but it’s actually one of the two forward players that I brought in that has made the most difference to the team.Dan Crane was a player that scored a lot of goals for the club in the Blue Square South, but when I won promotion to the Blue Square Premier I sold him on as his wages were just getting too high for me to handle. Three years in Wales with Llanelli and Dan Crane has developed to become an even more impressive forward. I bought him back for twice what I sold him on for; he’s definitely been worth the investment though, and has already scored 15 goals in just 23 appearances.
Craig Mackail-Smith was the other forward that I brought to the club at the start of the season, and whilst he started off brightly; he had a 10 game spell where no goals were scored, and his confidence therefore suffered. He’s scored 6 in 22 appearances, Dan Crane has been by far the best summer purchase though, and should continue to be an integral part of the team next season if we are indeed promoted to League One.
It’s probably a little early to be thinking about life in League One just yet; hopefully the team will continue to perform though, and still be in the top 3 come the end of the season. I wouldn’t say no to a place in the play-offs, I’d rather get the job done without having to take part in the play-off lottery though, so here’s to hoping that no major injury issues spoil my ambitions, and that I do indeed get the points required to gain promotion.
End of Season Disappointment
After an excellent first season in League Two; I was hoping to make my way into the Play-Offs and fight for a place in League One. Sadly my Havant & Waterloovile team finished just outside the play-offs in 8th, and we’ll therefore be playing our football in League Two again next season.
A couple of players are set to leave in the summer, most of the squad will be staying though, and hopefully a couple of new players will be brought in to join them. I’m confident that my team can make the play-offs next season, and if I am able to increase the quality a tad with my summer signings then there’s a possibility that we could even achieve automatic promotion next season.
Havant & Waterlooville can be a League One team, and next season I will be looking to take the team up another level.
Life in League Two With Havant & Waterlooville
Life in League Two with Havant & Waterlooville was never likely to be easy; the majority of my players are still part-timers, we were given a transfer budget of just £450, and the wage budget is pretty minimal also. Two thirds of the way through the season and I’m 6th in the table though, and fighting for promotion to League One.
Last season I beat off Rushden & Diamonds and York City to win promotion via the Blue Square Premier play-offs, and it now looks as though I’ll be heading into the League Two play-offs also. Whether or not I’ll make it to Wembley again remains to be seen, it’d be brilliant to take Havant & Waterlooville up another level though, so hopefully I will indeed make it all the way to Wembley.
The players that I have in my squad have mostly travelled up with me from the Blue Square South, and there aren’t any players that look out of their depth either. I’ve got a few loan signings in to provide a little extra in midfield/attack, and the three players that have been brought in are doing a mighty fine job for the club. I’ll be looking to sign them up on a permanent basis come the end of the season, and hopefully I’ll be successful in securing their signatures.
The media prediction was that I’d finish 24th in League Two with Havant & Waterlooville this season; there’s no chance of that happening now though, and I’ll instead to be hoping to finish in the top 7, once again earning a place in the play-offs.
From the Blue Square North to the Blue Square South
Having taken Witton Albion from the Blue Square North to the Blue Square Premier, and then back down again; I decided that it was time to move on in my Football Manager career, and after three years with Witton I resigned from my post and applied for the vacant Havant & Waterlooville position.I didn’t get the job with the Blue Square South side, so went on holiday indefinitely, issuing an instruction to apply for any and all managerial positions available. Coming back to the game a little later; I found that the Havant manager had been sacked, and I’d now been offered the position in mid-October. The team had just been knocked out of the FA Cup by Lewes in the 3rd Qualifying Round, and was hovering around the relegation zone in the league. I did my best to drag the team as far up the league as possible, and although the staff weren’t too impressed to finish 6th, just outside the play-offs; I was happy to have made progress with Havant, and looked forward to an exciting summer of signing new players.
Several players were brought in, including Sam Deering, John Rooney, and Marvin Brown, as well as a promising young forward from Bromley named Fred James, and a couple of players in on loan from Southampton also. Portsmouth is officially my parent club, no one ever wants to join from Portsmouth though, whilst Southampton youngsters are seemingly much more willing to learn their trade for a team in the non-league.
Fred James was my top scorer for the season with 30 goals in all competitions, Sam Deering also became a first team favourite, and I was also very impressed with the two loan signings from Southampton. John Rooney has become a decent squad player, all of the rest of my new signings were shown the door at the end of the season though, and as I won the play-offs; I was now hoping to sign players of a higher calibre in order to carry my side forward. Both players from Southampton have now been signed on for life in the Blue Square Premier, with Alex Campana joining from Billericay to give me another option on the right, and a promising young left-back has been signed from AFC Wimbledon. I didn’t have much of a wage budget, so those were the only players I was able to bring in; I would like to sign more though, and will be looking to bring a few new players in on loan throughout the season.
Within the game my team is in a huge amount of debt; slowly but surely that debt seems to be disappearing though, and winning the FA Trophy last season certainly helped bring in a bit of profit.
I nearly kept Witton in the Blue Square Premier when I won promotion with them, so having nearly done it with a lesser squad; I now feel that I’m well equipped to avoid relegation with Havant & Waterlooville. It’s not going to be an easy season, I’m definitely up for the challenge though, and hopefully come the end of the season I’ll have accumulated enough points to stay up. A top half finish would be brilliant, anything above the relegation zone will be seen as a bonus though, and so long as I avoid relegation then I’ll be happy with my achievements.
Witton Relegated
After a long, hard season in the Blue Square Premier; I’ve sadly seen my Witton Albion team relegated, and after winning only 1 of the last 17 games of the season; I can hardly be surprised that my team just wasn’t good enough to stay up.15 games I went without a win, before finally achieving one against relegated Bishop’s Stortford in the penultimate game of the season; my form was far too poor to stop my team from going down though, and after a 1-1 draw with Woking on the final day of the season, I was relegated in 21st, with Worcester one point ahead of me. Quite how I managed to finish the season so badly I’m not too sure; I had looked pretty safe at one stage, you start to slip down the league when you’re not winning games though, and it was slightly upsetting to experience relegation in my first season at that level.
11 players put themselves on the transfer list after I was relegated, and I therefore faced a potential problem of losing the majority of my team. Slowly they’re coming crawling back though, asking to be removed from the transfer list, and as I’ve had no offers; I think I’ll safely be able to keep hold of my squad, as well as hopefully bringing in a few fresh faces.
Hopefully we’ll be able to bounce straight back to the Blue Square Premier, If not I’ll probably be leaving at the end of the season though, and will start looking elsewhere for a fresh new team to manage.
I would like to get back to the league at some point; I might have to do it the hard way though, and although managing a non-league team is fun; I am rather missing the glory of managing a team from the league, and may have to try and get back there sooner rather than later. I want to take Witton as far as possible, I get the feeling that the Blue Square Premier may well be the peak though, and if we’re not in contention to reach the play-offs come Christmas; I might just resign, and move onto pastures new in my quest for football management success.
Witton Albion Promoted to the Blue Square Premier
Taking charge of a Witton Albion squad with only one on-loan team member to speak of; I had to build my squad from scratch, and was well prepared for a tough first season in the Blue Square North.
I didn’t expect my free transfer signings to perform miracles, they did though, and despite losing on the last day of the season to a team from near the bottom; I was able to finish the season top, two points clear of Boston United.
I’m half expecting my team to be relegated straight back down again; it’d be nice to be able to stay up though, so hopefully I’ll be guiding Witton to a second season in the Blue Square Premier. If we do stay up then next season will probably be my last, and I’ll probably then look to take charge of a league team again. If I can get Witton promoted next season though then that will change things entirely, and I’ll be looking to remain with the club more long term.
So my football management future is still uncertain, I’d love to achieve great success with Witton though, so hopefully things will work out well for me next season, and I can begin to move up the leagues with the part-time football team that is Witton Albion.
Andrei Arshavin in Football Manager 2009
As is also the case in real life; Andrei Arshavin is a player that is most definitely well worth signing in Football Manager 2009. He can cut it at the top level, and if you’re managing a team that has ambitions of lifting the title/performing well in continental competition; Andrei Arshavin is a player that would be an absolute asset to your squad.
A consistent performer with a powerful ability to chip in with a few goals and many assists; Andrei Arshavin is an absolutely amazing player, and you can guarantee that he’ll always work very hard for you.
You’ll have to splash out somewhere in the region of £14/15 million for Andrei Arshavin, so he’s definitely not a player that can be purchased on the cheap; pay that sort of money for him though and you will be impressed with what he can do for you, and Arshavin will no doubt become a first-team regular for you.
I really rate Andrei Arshavin as a player, and since joining Arsenal in the Premier League; it has been an absolute joy to watch him in action in England. A quality player in real life, Arshavin is equally effective in Football Manager, so definitely do sign him if you’ve got the money to do so as he really will become a hugely effective member of your squad.
A consistent performer with a powerful ability to chip in with a few goals and many assists; Andrei Arshavin is an absolutely amazing player, and you can guarantee that he’ll always work very hard for you.
You’ll have to splash out somewhere in the region of £14/15 million for Andrei Arshavin, so he’s definitely not a player that can be purchased on the cheap; pay that sort of money for him though and you will be impressed with what he can do for you, and Arshavin will no doubt become a first-team regular for you.
I really rate Andrei Arshavin as a player, and since joining Arsenal in the Premier League; it has been an absolute joy to watch him in action in England. A quality player in real life, Arshavin is equally effective in Football Manager, so definitely do sign him if you’ve got the money to do so as he really will become a hugely effective member of your squad.
Another 40 Point Challenge Failure
Having failed to achieve 40 points in my first season in charge of Hull City; I once again set myself the same challenge for my second season as manager. The season started poorly, and I felt at the time that I was probably going to get relegated. Form picked up as the season progressed though, my players began to play more like a team, and ultimately I finished the season 14th.Despite finishing the season two places higher than I did the first time round; I still only managed 38 points, and once again failed in my quest for 40 points. As planned, I left the club in the summer, and decided to take charge of Witton Albion, a club that had just achieved promotion to the Blue Square North, and a team that only had one player when I joined; Matt Freeman on loan from Crewe.
25 players were signed in a bid to make Witton Albion a real football team, 23 of which were free transfers, another on loan from Crewe, and 1 player I paid £1,000 for from Southport, Hakeem Araba. I thought he had potential as a player, and would fit in nicely in my quickly constructed team of Blue Square misfits.
Most players I signed had experience in the Blue Square Premier/North/South, a few of them though were ex Football League players that had failed to make the cut at their respective clubs. Not exactly a team of champions, I’m rather pleased with the part-timers that I’ve signed though, and although pre-season was poor as the players got to know one another; the season has started well, and I’m confident of achieving success with Witton Albion.
Who knows; I may even be able to guide Witton to the Blue Square Premier.
Hull City 40 Point Challenge Failure
I’ve started a new game, this time managing Hull City, and my first season aim was to achieve Premiership survival, and secure a minimum of 40 points for my team. Whilst I did indeed avoid relegation; I only managed 38 points, falling just short of the target that I set myself at the beginning of the season.
As I failed in my first season, I’m going to set myself the same challenge again for my second, and hopefully I’ll this time be able to achieve my aim of securing 40 Premier League points.
In my first season I signed Edgar Davids, Celestine Babayaro, Robbie Fowler, and Sebastian Abreu, all on free transfers. Of those four; Abreu was the only player that managed to put in some decent performances, and even he was largely disappointing. Edgar Davids was frankly rubbish, and I was pleased to palm him off to NEC on a free transfer at the end of the season, Robbie Fowler is now a member of my reserves, a place where Abreu may well end up before long also, and as for Babayaro; I released him on a free transfer after 3 substitute appearances, and he now turns out for Luton Town in League Two.
This season I’ve signed Federico Macheda from Manchester United for £1.9 million, Dean Whitehead from Sunderland for £3.5 million, Grant Leadbitter from Sunderland for £4.4 million, Robbie Blake for just under a million from Burnley, and have picked up the Manchester City foursome of Darius Vassell, Daniel Sturridge, Danny Mills, and Glauber, all on free transfers. I’ve also brought in Fabio for the season on loan from Manchester United to provide a bit of cover at the back, and hopefully my team will once again be able to achieve a reasonable number of Premier League points.
I definitely feel that my squad has been strengthened, and whilst players have been sold as well as brought in (Geovanni, Sam Ricketts, and Michael Turner most importantly); I do feel a great sense of optimism for the season ahead, and believe that this year I will achieve my aim of reaching 40 points.
Whether I do or don’t make it to 40 points; I’ll probably be off at the end of the season anyway, and will probably take over a lower level club in the hope of taking them up the league system. Someone from the Blue Square North or South could be pretty interesting, anything of League Two level or lower would be quite fun though, and I always enjoy the thrill of achieving unexpected promotion.
So next season I shall almost certainly be off; this season the focus is 40 points though, and if I can once again drag my Hull team to safety then I’ll be pleased with my achievements as manager. I thought it’d be a reasonable challenge guiding Hull City to safety last season, and it was; I did it though, and I’m now looking to do it all over again. Winning leagues is definitely more fun, but I certainly never shy away from a good old fashioned relegation dogfight.
Time to Face Football Manager Retirement?
No Football Manager career can last forever, and when you’ve taken a team from the Blue Square Premier to the very top of the Premier League; there’s just very little left that you can really accomplish.I’ve won the UEFA Cup multiple times over, the European Super Cup a number of times also, and having this season been involved in my first ever Champions League tournament; I’ve now won that also. The League Cup, FA Cup, and Community Shield have all been won by my Oxford United team, and I also have the best striker in the world in my squad.
Only two of the players left in my squad are actually real players (Chris Gunter and Denilson), and all the others are system generated. 13 of my first team players are capped at full international level, and there are 4 players capped at England Under-21 level also, 2 of which I believe would have gone on to become full international stars of the future.
My Oxford United squad consists of 22 players, and every season I’ve looked to strengthen my squad, and ultimately accomplished my aim of winning the Premier League with Oxford. It took me 5 seasons in the Premier League to break into the Top 4, and just 6 seasons to win it; in 12 years in charge of Oxford United I’ve taken my team from the top level of the non-league right through to the very top of the Premier League.
When players coming up through the ranks of the youth team were born in August 2008; it’s definitely time to move on, and in the year 2024 I now look to close my career in Football Manager. It’s been a fun 16 years in football management whilst it’s lasted, there’s nothing left to accomplish now though, and this Football Manager career is now officially over.
This career may be over, but Football Manager Blogger is definitely far from finished; it’s only a matter of time before I embark upon another fantastic football management career, and as and when I do so I shall once more be sharing all here.
Junior Stanislas in Football Manager 2009
If you like to sign quality young players in Football Manager, then Junior Stanislas is a midfield option which is definitely well worth considering. Stanislas made his first start for West Ham on April 4th, and even managed to get his name on the scoresheet in a 2-0 victory over Sunderland. In real life he’s currently looking very promising, and in Football Manager also he has fantastic potential as a player.At the start of the game I’d say that Stanislas would be a decent signing for a Championship/League One level club, as time progresses though then there’s a good chance that he’ll do a quality job for a team in the Premier League.
Stanislas is likely to chip in with a number of goals per season, and over the course of each campaign will (in my experience) average a high 6 rating, usually in the 6.8/6.9 area.
Stanislas will take a few seasons to hit peak form, and will require experience if he’s to progress properly; gradually bring him in the team though, build up his confidence, and you’ll be able to watch as Stanislas grows to become an important member of your squad.
Give Junior Stanislas a place in your squad and one day he might just become an England international.
Photo by Yabush
Oxford Win the Treble
In claiming the Europa League Cup, FA Cup, and League Cup also; I’ve proudly claimed the treble with Oxford United, managing to achieve what I’ll probably never be able to again. Playing Blackburn of the Championship in the FA Cup Final was a bit of a gimme, and beating Chelsea in the Europa League final should have been harder than it was, but although my players didn’t really do a lot in the game; we did manage to score a goal, and that was more than Chelsea ever looked like doing. Winning the League Cup was probably actually the hardest of the three, and that took a tense penalty shoot-out to achieve.
I’m pleased that we won the treble, but I do feel that we did so at the expense of a place in the Champions League next season. 5th place we finished, 3 points behind Tottenham, and 2 ahead of both Stoke and Portsmouth. Portsmouth thumped us 4-2 towards the end of the campaign, and I can’t help but think that if we hadn’t played so many cup games towards the end of the season then maybe we would have won more than 2 of our last 10 league games. Key players had to be rested for league games to be available for cup games, and if we hadn’t done so well in all of the cups then we’d have had more of a team to choose from.
My Oxford team has lacked strength in depth ever since arriving in the Premier League, and although we can beat most teams when all players are available; when important players are missing we tend to falter, and our cover is in most cases inadequate. We need a few more quality players in the squad to increase our options I feel, and in the transfer window I’ll be looking to bring a few new Premier League faces to the squad with the view to finish in the top four next season, hopefully combined with a quality cup run also.
I’m pleased that we won the treble, but I do feel that we did so at the expense of a place in the Champions League next season. 5th place we finished, 3 points behind Tottenham, and 2 ahead of both Stoke and Portsmouth. Portsmouth thumped us 4-2 towards the end of the campaign, and I can’t help but think that if we hadn’t played so many cup games towards the end of the season then maybe we would have won more than 2 of our last 10 league games. Key players had to be rested for league games to be available for cup games, and if we hadn’t done so well in all of the cups then we’d have had more of a team to choose from.
My Oxford team has lacked strength in depth ever since arriving in the Premier League, and although we can beat most teams when all players are available; when important players are missing we tend to falter, and our cover is in most cases inadequate. We need a few more quality players in the squad to increase our options I feel, and in the transfer window I’ll be looking to bring a few new Premier League faces to the squad with the view to finish in the top four next season, hopefully combined with a quality cup run also.
Oxford Win the League Cup Again
For the second season running I’ve been able to win the League Cup, and I’ve once again done so in defeating Manchester City on penalties. Last season we were able to win the cup in seven penalties, this season it went to nine though, and ultimately we won it 8-7.
It’s quite a strange coincidence that we should two times running meet Manchester City at Wembley, what’s even weirder is defeating them both times in a shoot-out though, and I’m pleased that we’ve once again managed to defeat a side that is, in all honesty, a better team than us.
Star player Shaun Goddard was sadly injured in the match, and so too were Adam Kay and Jamie White. None of the injuries look too serious though, and we should have all three players back in the squad within the month.
We’re still in the FA Cup and European Super League also, so perhaps we’ll be able to win the treble this season? We did the double last year, so anything it seems is always possible.
Denilson in Football Manager 2009
Arsenal’s Denilson is a player that I definitely feel is well worth investing in if you’re managing a top level team in Football Manager 2009. Denilson is a quality player, and as he’s only 20 years-old when the game begins, you’re therefore likely to get many years use out of him.Denilson will chip in with a number of goals, provide some quality assists, and although he may not be the centrepiece of your squad; Denilson is still sure to become a valuable member of your team, and his presence in midfield can never be underestimated.
The great thing about Denilson is that if you sign him early then he won’t cost you tens and millions, and yet you’ll no doubt get just as much out of him as you would out of a player that you paid two or three times as much for. £5 million is probably the sort of cash that you’re going to have to splash out for Denilson, and at that price he’s definitely well worth the money.
Try to sign Denilson as early as possible, and watch as he develops and grows. Buying Denilson in Football Manager 2009 may just turn out to be the best investment you ever made.
Oxford Win the UEFA Europa League
In a repeat of the 1986 Milk Cup final; in the world of Football Manager, Oxford United has once more beaten QPR in a major cup final, and this time it’s a far more important one too, the UEFA Europa League.
We went into the game as favourites, and two goals from Shaun Goddard meant that we were able to win the cup. They were Goddard’s first two goals for the club, and he went on to score again in a 3-0 final day victory over Chelsea at the Kassam. £3.5 million is the price we’ll be paying to bring Goddard back to the club on a permanent basis, and seen as he apparently “has the potential to far exceed Roy Davis’ current level of ability”, and Roy Davis scored 25 goals for the season; I do believe that signing him for that price is an absolute bargain. Man City’s loss is my gain, and the England Under-21 will no doubt be an excellent strike partner for Roy Davis next season.
I think Shaun Goddard may just prove to be my best signing yet, and now can’t wait to see him back in action at the Kassam next season.
The UEFA Europa League Cup has now been added to my Oxford United trophy cabinet, and Oxford United is continuing to make progress in my quest to make Oxford the best football team in England.
A top four finish is now what I’ll be looking to achieve next season, and with the new signings that I’m going to be making then I do believe that a place in the Champions League is definitely possible.
Oxford Win the League Cup
In a tight game at Wembley, we were able to defeat Man City on penalties after a 1-1 draw over the course of 120 minutes. City’s star player was injured in the match, and two of our best performers were injured also; when it came down to it we were able to win the game on penalties though, and therefore guaranteed our place in Europe next season.
7-6 we won it, once more showing our penalty prowess in scoring all seven of our penalties. We’ve won quite a few shoot-outs now, and never in a shoot-out do we ever seem to miss anymore. We’ll miss the occasional penalty within a match, the players seem to thrive under pressure though, and I’m now always very confident when heading into a penalty shoot-out situation. It’s our best chance of beating better opposition, and once again we did so in overcoming impressive league leaders Manchester City.
The FA Cup last season and the League Cup this one; all I’d really like to win now is the Premier League, and then my domestic glory will be complete. I doubt I’ll be able to win the Premier League for some time yet (not unless I quit Oxford to manage a better club), but hopefully someday the Premier League trophy will be lifted by my Oxford United team, and we’ll officially be the best club in England.
James Constable Signs for Oxford
A real world story for you rather than a virtual one; news has been announced today that James Constable has signed a three-year deal with Oxford United. He’s on loan from Shrewsbury Town until the end of the season, but is to join the club on a permanent basis for an undisclosed fee in the summer.
Constable has been in brilliant form for Oxford this season, and has become a real fans favourite as a result of the 22 goals that he’s scored for the club so far.
It’s fantastic news for the future of Oxford United Football Club that Constable is to sign for the club, and news that we’ve all been waiting to hear for some time now. James Constable really is a brilliant player, and always he plays with a real passion for the sport.
Here’s to hoping that with the help of James Constable we’ll be heading back to the football league, and if he can score more than 20 goals again next season then he’ll no doubt be remembered by fans of the club for many years to come.
James Constable is one of the very best forward players in the Blue Square Premier right now, and it really is absolutely brilliant news that he’ll be remaining in Oxford for at least another three years.
Wayne Rooney in Football Manager 2009
In my experience, I’ve found that in Football Manager 2009 Wayne Rooney continues to be an important player for both club and country for many years to come. I think it’d probably be very difficult for any club to prize him away from Manchester United, but if he can be convinced to leave then he’d be a very valuable player to have.Rooney is an incredibly consistent performer, and a 7 rating for the season can always be expected with Wayne Rooney. He’s supremely reliable, incredibly loyal, and it’s really very hard to find fault with the player that also scores a lot of goals.
Wayne Rooney is a brilliant player in real life, but his temperament has often been questioned; he does seem to mellow out in his later years in Football Manager 2009, but whether in real life or in a video game, the fiery nature of Wayne Rooney will never be completely removed. Rooney’s passionate play is his strength, and when you play with such power and determination then bookings are always to be expected.
Wayne Rooney is a player that is well worth investing in, and if you’ve got the money to splash out then I honestly believe that Rooney is one of the best players money can buy.
Photo By: Gordon Flood
League Cup Final for Oxford
We’re not doing very well in the league right now, but we are achieving fantastic success in cup competitions, so at least that’s certainly one thing.
Having defeated QPR in the League Cup Semi-Final, we’ve now got Manchester City to look forward to at Wembley. It wasn’t easy beating QPR, and it took a penalty shoot-out for us to progress after being reduced to ten men, but we’ve done it, and we now have another chance to win at Wembley.
Manchester City is top of the Premier League right now and there’s therefore a good chance that we’ll lose the game, we’ve done well to reach the final though, and I’m just pleased that we’ve been able to get so far.
I can only hope that we start beating teams in the Premier League soon, but right now that just doesn’t seem to be our forte. We’ve been picking up quite a few injuries recently as well and the squad is now looking seriously flimsy; I can see us falling into the bottom three before long, but hopefully our position will be a little more impressive come the end of the season.
I think cup success this season has ultimately been our downfall as we’ve just been playing too many games to handle. We’re now suffering as a result of our success and our squad has been seriously depleted.
My Oxford team just need to weather the storm right now, and hopefully when the team is back to full strength we’ll be able to start winning games in the league again.
Best Young Players in Football Manager 2009
I’ve put together a list at BrightHub.com, comprising of some of the best young players in Football Manager 2009. In every individual game there will be some players that shine and others that don’t; these are players that I’ve seen progress well within the game though, players that have definite potential to perform and become absolute stars of the future.
There are the obvious options such as Lionel Messi, Theo Walcott, and Igor Akinfeev; I’ve also tried to include some players that you might not necessarily think of first though, and hopefully you’ll be able to pick up a few new ideas for some super signings after reading the list.
I’ve named five goalkeepers, five defenders, five midfielders, and five strikers, and although I’ll admit that there is a bit of a Premier League player bias (eight of the twenty play their trade in England’s top flight); hopefully the list will be helpful if you’re managing any top level club, not just one from England.
These are my recommendations if you’re managing a top level team, if you’re managing a club from a lower level though then I do have a bit of basic general advice for you. If you can’t afford expensive signings then look to the clubs from the leagues above. Look to their reserve teams, and see if you can bring any of their players in on loan that you believe would improve upon the current quality/strength in depth of your squad. I love managing lower level clubs, and I’ve found throughout the years that this method works wonders.
In addition to loaning players that aren’t the first choices at their respective clubs; at the end of every season, check to see the players that clubs from the leagues above are letting go, and consider signing these players also. Sometimes you’ll sign players this way and they’ll flop, other times though they can turn out to be your star signings, so always keep in mind that just because it hasn’t worked for them elsewhere, it doesn’t mean that they won’t become a valuable member of your squad.
Click here to read my article featuring twenty young players that I consider to be amongst the best that Football Manager 2009 has to offer.
Unbeaten in Europe
I now go into the knockout stage unbeaten in Europe, and of the eight games I’ve played so far; six of them I’ve won, and two of them I’ve drawn, scoring 19 goals and conceding just 5 in the process.
We now have to play Monaco in the 1st Knockout Round, and Monaco has only lost one game so far, and that was against Borussia Dortmund, so I very much doubt that they’ll be an easy team to overcome. Hopefully we’ll be able to remain unbeaten though, and if we can progress into the 2nd Knockout Round then I really will be pleased.
I’m not expecting to win the Europa League, but it would be nice to get as far as possible, and I’m just not ready to leave the tournament yet. Here’s to hoping that we’ll be able to beat Monaco, and that we’ll then be able to defeat whoever we happen to play in the 2nd Knockout Round also. The next round is not going to be easy, but hopefully we will be able to emerge victorious.
We now have to play Monaco in the 1st Knockout Round, and Monaco has only lost one game so far, and that was against Borussia Dortmund, so I very much doubt that they’ll be an easy team to overcome. Hopefully we’ll be able to remain unbeaten though, and if we can progress into the 2nd Knockout Round then I really will be pleased.
I’m not expecting to win the Europa League, but it would be nice to get as far as possible, and I’m just not ready to leave the tournament yet. Here’s to hoping that we’ll be able to beat Monaco, and that we’ll then be able to defeat whoever we happen to play in the 2nd Knockout Round also. The next round is not going to be easy, but hopefully we will be able to emerge victorious.
Europe Easier Than Expected
Having won my first three Group B games; it has to be said that European football has so far been a lot easier than I’d expected. We beat Panathinaikos 2-0 at the Kassam in the first game, Hibs 3-0 away in the second, and then Werder Bremen 2-1 away in the third. With three games played we’ve already got 9 points on the board, and if we can beat Panathinaikos away in the next game then I think that will really wrap the group up.
So far, so good, and our +6 goal difference really does look very promising going into the last three games of the group. PSV, Stuttgart, and Borussia Dortmund are the only other teams to have won all of their first three Group games in the competition, and although I never would have thought it possible; I think we actually might be one of the best teams in the competition.
Alan Ramsey is our top scorer so far, and already the left-back we signed from Man United in the summer has grabbed three goals in Europe. He’s one of our only players with previous experience in Europe, and although he’s only 22; he’s certainly showing the others how it’s done.
There’s still work to be done if we’re to qualify, we’ve made the best start possible though, and shown that although we’re the new kids on the European block, we’re still a strong side, and one that the other teams definitely ought to fear.
Oxford's First Taste of European Football
Having beaten Russian side Khimki 7-0 on aggregate in the 4th Qualifying Round; we’re now through to the European Super League group stage where we’ve been drawn in Group B along with Werder Bremen, Panathinaikos, and Hibernian. Hibs should be pretty easy to take 6 points from; I think the others might be a little more difficult to beat though, particularly Panathinaikos that almost made it through to the Champions League group stage.
I was very pleased with the 7-0 demolition of Khimki, and although we only won 1-0 away; winning 6-0 at home was certainly very pleasing, with five different players scoring, two of which were defenders. It’s quite exciting that we can score goals from all around the park, and it means that even when our strikers aren’t firing; goals are still likely to be scored, and hopefully we won’t be suffering from any serious goal droughts.
Luke Hobbs was one of the players to score against Khimki at the Kassam, and although he’s yet to score in the league this season; I’m hopeful that he’ll have another successful campaign, and get his name on the scoresheet a good few times throughout the season.
Panathinaikos is the first team we face in Group B, and they’ve got to travel to the Kassam to meet us. If it was an away game then I’d probably be feeling slightly nervy, as it’s at home though I feel that we’ve got quite a good chance. Following on from that game we’ve got Hibs away followed by Werder Bremen away though in Europe, and as we’ve never before travelled to Europe I’m unsure as to how we’re going to cope with those two games. Hopefully the players will be able to handle the pressure of playing so far away from home though, and we’ll be able to progress into the first knockout round.
On our day we can beat the best teams in England, so hopefully luck will be on our side when we head into Europe.
Oxford Win the Community Shield
Once again Oxford United has won at Wembley, defeating Newcastle United 2-1 in the Community Shield. Last season’s top scorer Luke Hobbs was the first player to get on the score sheet, and three minutes later Vince Asante added a second. Morgan Schneiderlin clawed one back for Newcastle in the71st minute, it wasn’t enough though, and ultimately it was us that came away with the win.
Newcastle United won the Premier League last season, and it’s therefore very pleasing to beat them; things are looking pretty good for our second season in the Premier League, and we’ve now got a trip to Russia to look forward to in just four days time. FC Khimki is our opponents, and we’ll be bringing them back to the Kassam two weeks later. Hopefully we’ll be able to score an away goal or two, and that will make the home tie a lot less stressful.
It’s nice to have won at Wembley again, and this time we didn’t even need a penalty shoot-out to do it (as was the case in both the FA Cup semi-final and final last season). Hopefully this big win will now help our confidence in Russia, and make sure that we once more coast to victory.
The Plan For My Second Season in the Premier League
Next season my main priority will be Europe, and I’ll also be looking to achieve a top half finish in the Premier League. We almost did it last season, and with an improved team I’ll now look to do even better, and any position above 11th would just be absolutely brilliant. Premier League survival will be what I’ll be looking for at the very least, but I’d love to finish in the top half, and hopefully I’ll be able to do so.
I doubt we’ll win the FA Cup again, we’ll give it a go though, and failing winning the FA Cup, then perhaps we can win the League Cup! I’d love to make European qualification a regular thing, and unless we win a cup then I doubt we’ll qualify for Europe. The chances of winning the European Super League are slim, and a Top 6 finish is also pretty unlikely, so the two cup’s will be pretty important, and we’ll therefore be giving them both our best.
So a top half finish is what we’ll be looking for next season, and success in cup competitions will also be important. It’s going to be a tough season, but it should also be pretty fun, and I now look forward to bettering my final position in the Premier League.
I doubt we’ll win the FA Cup again, we’ll give it a go though, and failing winning the FA Cup, then perhaps we can win the League Cup! I’d love to make European qualification a regular thing, and unless we win a cup then I doubt we’ll qualify for Europe. The chances of winning the European Super League are slim, and a Top 6 finish is also pretty unlikely, so the two cup’s will be pretty important, and we’ll therefore be giving them both our best.
So a top half finish is what we’ll be looking for next season, and success in cup competitions will also be important. It’s going to be a tough season, but it should also be pretty fun, and I now look forward to bettering my final position in the Premier League.
Oxford Win the FA Cup
Having performed above expectation in finishing 11th in my first season in the Premier League with Oxford; I also led my team to Wembley, and won the FA Cup with an incredibly tense penalty shoot-out victory over West Ham.
We won the game 15-14, and will therefore now be playing in Europe next season. We’ve only ever lost to West Ham once, and that was back when we were playing in League Two. We met on three occasions last season; twice in the league, and once in the cup. I took 4 points off of them in the league, but beating them in the FA Cup final was certainly the sweetest of the three.
We had to overcome some tough teams in reaching the final, and West Ham certainly wasn’t the most difficult opponent that we faced; it still proved to be one of the trickiest games of the season though, and we were forced to play the match with a number of our top performers missing. The team we fielded was not our best, and that therefore could have gone against us, thankfully we were still able to win the game though, and an impressive first season in the Premier League was ultimately made all the more memorable.
The game ended goalless, we held our nerve in the shoot-out though, and didn’t miss a single penalty. Hopefully there’ll be more FA Cup success to come in the future, winning it once is greater than I ever imagined we’d do though, and appearing in Europe is the fine reward that we now have to look forward to.
We won the game 15-14, and will therefore now be playing in Europe next season. We’ve only ever lost to West Ham once, and that was back when we were playing in League Two. We met on three occasions last season; twice in the league, and once in the cup. I took 4 points off of them in the league, but beating them in the FA Cup final was certainly the sweetest of the three.
We had to overcome some tough teams in reaching the final, and West Ham certainly wasn’t the most difficult opponent that we faced; it still proved to be one of the trickiest games of the season though, and we were forced to play the match with a number of our top performers missing. The team we fielded was not our best, and that therefore could have gone against us, thankfully we were still able to win the game though, and an impressive first season in the Premier League was ultimately made all the more memorable.
The game ended goalless, we held our nerve in the shoot-out though, and didn’t miss a single penalty. Hopefully there’ll be more FA Cup success to come in the future, winning it once is greater than I ever imagined we’d do though, and appearing in Europe is the fine reward that we now have to look forward to.
40 is the Magic Number
So my Oxford United team won promotion from the Championship at the first time of asking, and having won League One by some margin with 104 points; we then went on to triumph in the Championship with 82. Admittedly we only won the Championship by 3 points, I never would have dreamed of winning it though, and thought that at best we had a slim chance of reaching the play-offs.
We’re now chasing 40 Premier League points, and 26 games into the season have amassed 29, so I’m pretty confident we can do it. Looking back at every Premier League season since the beginning of the game; I can actually see that 37 points has always been enough to survive, and that occasionally little over 30 has been enough to do it. My own personal aim is to reach the 40 point mark though, and if we can do that with what is essentially a Championship team at best, then I really will be impressed.
Most of my team don’t have any Premier League experience, and a lot of these players have travelled with me right from League One. My main signings have been Adam Kay (has never played at a higher level than the Championship), Junior Stanislas (spent the last six seasons in the Championship with Leeds, prior to that had minimal Premier League experience), Francois Clerc (spent the last three seasons in the Championship), Joe Ledley (my only concrete Premier League signing), and two young central defenders from the Championship; Ashley Doherty and Paul Barlow. I also have a 37 year-old Xabi Alonso on loan from Liverpool, and a fairly useless young Italian on loan from AC Milan.
My main strikers are Roy Davis and Luke Hobbs; Hobbs has been with me since League Two, and Davis since League One. I also have Jamie White and Emile Sinclair at my disposal upfront, Sinclair has also been with me since League One, and White was my only signing last season in the Championship.
Stanislas would be my first choice right midfielder, but has been injured for much of the season so far, and I’ve therefore been playing Matthew Kelly in the position, a 24 year-old that’s risen with me from the Blue Square Premier.
Over half my first choice players have been with me since at least League One, and a 39 year-old Rudi Skacel is my second choice left-back. I’m happy with my squad, and am pleased with the players that I have at the club; I wouldn’t say that we’re really a Premier League team though, and after losing three games on the trot at the start of the season; I seriously thought we were in danger of being embarrassed in this league, and thought that we’d probably finish absolute bottom with minimal points gained. Thankfully that didn’t happen though, my team has battled away to 5 wins,14 draws, and overall we’ve gained 29 points. We’ve had high profile draws with Chelsea, Tottenham, and QPR, and Luke Hobbs has even grabbed himself 10 Premier League goals and sits joint 11th in the league for goals scored. Not bad for the man that only managed 12 in the Championship last season in 9 more appearances.
We desperately need a new left-back next season, and the right-back position is a bit of a problem area also; overall I’m pretty pleased with my squad though, we’ve achieved great things with very limited resources, and the one real Premier League player that we’ve bought proved to be an absolute bargain for the price. We smashed our transfer record in paying £1.4 million for Joe Ledley; he was well worth the money though, and has slotted in nicely, into a team that is driven, determined, and not afraid to fight for points. Against supposedly superior teams we show no fear, and although the team is young (the average age of our title winning team last season was 24); these are professional players with incredible ability, and what they lack in experience they make up for in gritty determination.
It looks as though we’ll be remaining in the Premier League for next season, and my next aim will be to further strengthen my squad, and hopefully achieve a top half finish next season. Oxford United Football Club has come a long way in my present Football Manager 2009 game, and I can only hope that the club will one day once more reach the top level league in real life also.
We’re now chasing 40 Premier League points, and 26 games into the season have amassed 29, so I’m pretty confident we can do it. Looking back at every Premier League season since the beginning of the game; I can actually see that 37 points has always been enough to survive, and that occasionally little over 30 has been enough to do it. My own personal aim is to reach the 40 point mark though, and if we can do that with what is essentially a Championship team at best, then I really will be impressed.
Most of my team don’t have any Premier League experience, and a lot of these players have travelled with me right from League One. My main signings have been Adam Kay (has never played at a higher level than the Championship), Junior Stanislas (spent the last six seasons in the Championship with Leeds, prior to that had minimal Premier League experience), Francois Clerc (spent the last three seasons in the Championship), Joe Ledley (my only concrete Premier League signing), and two young central defenders from the Championship; Ashley Doherty and Paul Barlow. I also have a 37 year-old Xabi Alonso on loan from Liverpool, and a fairly useless young Italian on loan from AC Milan.
My main strikers are Roy Davis and Luke Hobbs; Hobbs has been with me since League Two, and Davis since League One. I also have Jamie White and Emile Sinclair at my disposal upfront, Sinclair has also been with me since League One, and White was my only signing last season in the Championship.
Stanislas would be my first choice right midfielder, but has been injured for much of the season so far, and I’ve therefore been playing Matthew Kelly in the position, a 24 year-old that’s risen with me from the Blue Square Premier.
Over half my first choice players have been with me since at least League One, and a 39 year-old Rudi Skacel is my second choice left-back. I’m happy with my squad, and am pleased with the players that I have at the club; I wouldn’t say that we’re really a Premier League team though, and after losing three games on the trot at the start of the season; I seriously thought we were in danger of being embarrassed in this league, and thought that we’d probably finish absolute bottom with minimal points gained. Thankfully that didn’t happen though, my team has battled away to 5 wins,14 draws, and overall we’ve gained 29 points. We’ve had high profile draws with Chelsea, Tottenham, and QPR, and Luke Hobbs has even grabbed himself 10 Premier League goals and sits joint 11th in the league for goals scored. Not bad for the man that only managed 12 in the Championship last season in 9 more appearances.
We desperately need a new left-back next season, and the right-back position is a bit of a problem area also; overall I’m pretty pleased with my squad though, we’ve achieved great things with very limited resources, and the one real Premier League player that we’ve bought proved to be an absolute bargain for the price. We smashed our transfer record in paying £1.4 million for Joe Ledley; he was well worth the money though, and has slotted in nicely, into a team that is driven, determined, and not afraid to fight for points. Against supposedly superior teams we show no fear, and although the team is young (the average age of our title winning team last season was 24); these are professional players with incredible ability, and what they lack in experience they make up for in gritty determination.
It looks as though we’ll be remaining in the Premier League for next season, and my next aim will be to further strengthen my squad, and hopefully achieve a top half finish next season. Oxford United Football Club has come a long way in my present Football Manager 2009 game, and I can only hope that the club will one day once more reach the top level league in real life also.
The Changing Face of the Premier League Big Four
The changing face of the Premier League top four over the course of the next eight years; how the top four will look in the future according to my current career in Football Manager 2009.
Is it realistic that this will be the future of the Premier League? Yes and no. For a start there’s absolutely no chance that Newcastle will finish third this season, but is it likely that Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, and Manchester United will continue to dominate for years to come? There’s a strong chance of that, yes.
As can also be seen from my game; Manchester City becomes one of the top clubs in England as of the 2012/13 season, and if the Abu Dhabi United Group sticks with the club then that probably will be true as well.
Portsmouth is another club that has gone on to achieve fantastic success in my game, and has done so by holding onto important players like Jermain Defoe and Glen Johnson, and buying players cheap such as Nicklas Bendtner, Adrian, and Abou Diaby that have gone on to achieve fantastic success throughout the years. Peter Crouch was also a key figure for many years, consistently Portsmouth’s top scorer playing alongside Jermain Defoe, and that was therefore a huge help in establishing Portsmouth as a top English club.
Aside from the presence of Newcastle in the top four for the 2008/09 season; this could well be the future of the Premier League, and although exact positions may vary, Football Manager does tend to predict the future of football pretty well, and I feel that my game paints a pretty realistic Premier League future.
According to my current career in Football Manager 2009, this is what the future of the Premier League will look like:
2008/09
1. Arsenal
2. Chelsea
3. Newcastle
4. Man Utd
2009/10
1. Man Utd
2. Arsenal
3. Liverpool
4. Chelsea
2010/11
1. Arsenal
2. Chelsea
3. Liverpool
4. Man Utd
2011/12
1. Arsenal
2. Liverpool
3. Man Utd
4. Chelsea
2012/13
1. Arsenal
2. Man City
3. Chelsea
4. Liverpool
2013/14
1. Portsmouth
2. Arsenal
3. Man City
4. Man Utd
2014/15
1. Arsenal
2. Chelsea
3. Portsmouth
4. Man Utd
2015/16
1. Arsenal
2. Man City
3. Chelsea
4. Liverpool
2008/09
1. Arsenal
2. Chelsea
3. Newcastle
4. Man Utd
2009/10
1. Man Utd
2. Arsenal
3. Liverpool
4. Chelsea
2010/11
1. Arsenal
2. Chelsea
3. Liverpool
4. Man Utd
2011/12
1. Arsenal
2. Liverpool
3. Man Utd
4. Chelsea
2012/13
1. Arsenal
2. Man City
3. Chelsea
4. Liverpool
2013/14
1. Portsmouth
2. Arsenal
3. Man City
4. Man Utd
2014/15
1. Arsenal
2. Chelsea
3. Portsmouth
4. Man Utd
2015/16
1. Arsenal
2. Man City
3. Chelsea
4. Liverpool
Theo Walcott in Football Manager 2009
As you’d probably expect; Theo Walcott is a player that is definitely worth signing in Football Manager 2009 if you can manage to prize him away from Arsenal. It’ll take an incredibly high fee, if you can get Arsenal to accept an offer though then Theo Walcott would definitely be an outstanding signing if you’re managing one of the world’s top clubs.I’ve tried to sign him before and have never been able to do so; I’ve noticed a trend that he tends to score a lot of goals after a couple of seasons though, and soon reaches his potential as a truly world class player.
Expect a season average of greater than 7 with Theo Walcott; he’s a player that holds much promise in real life, and in Football Manager he’s also an absolute star. There’s just no faulting Theo Walcott, and he truly is an absolutely incredible English talent.
Freddy Adu in Football Manager 2009
If you’re managing a Premier League team then I’d definitely say that Freddy Adu is a player that is well worth signing. His stats are pretty decent, and if you do decide to sign him then he will become a valuable member of your squad. He might not necessarily be one of the best players in the world, he is a quality player though, and will perform well for you if you’re managing a team from the top flight.
As Freddy Adu is only 19 at the beginning of the game you’ll therefore get plenty of years play out of him. Adu is a brilliant player, and in my current game he’s had fantastic success for both Aston Villa and Arsenal. He joined Aston Villa from Benfica for £7.75 million in the 2009/10 season, and was later sold on to Arsenal for £15 million at the start of the 2015/16 season.
Freddy Adu is an accomplished player that will develop well , and he’s more than capable of playing football at the highest level possible. As an international he grows to become America’s finest talent, and at club level he can cut it in continental competition as well as in a top level league.
Try picking up Freddy Adu as early as possible, and watch as he develops to become one of your favourite players. Freddy Adu is a supremely talented player, and if you’re after a reasonably inexpensive midfield player that won’t be a disappointment then Freddy Adu is most definitely your man.
Oxford Promoted to the Championship
After an absolutely brilliant season which saw us pick up 104 points; Oxford United has been promoted to the Championship as League One Champions.
24 goals from Emile Sinclair and 23 from Roy Davis saw that we were promoted with style, and losing just 4 league games all season whilst winning 31 of the 46; we were most definitely a formidable force to be reckoned with.
Here's how the final League One table looked:
Five new signings became first team favourites, and three of them were signed from our former parent club Leeds. Leeds decided to cut the tie when we entered the same league, and with the board having failed to find a suitable feeder club we therefore no longer have one; even without loan players from a higher level parent team I feel that we’ll do well in the Championship though, and our pre-season results suggest that we may even have a shot at promotion.
In pre-season we beat Watford 2-0, Leeds United 1-0, and even achieved a 2-1 victory over last year’s Championship winners Reading. Reading won the league by a clear margin of 15 points last season, and although I somewhat doubt that we too will achieve such success; I do feel that we’ve got a good chance in the league, and that a play-off place could well be a possibility.
Despite the positives, it wasn’t all fun and games last season though; we lost to Derby County in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy final, and I therefore failed in my aim to do as I did with Huddersfield in winning the trophy twice. Still; we reached Wembley for the second time in three seasons, and although we didn’t win the cup, we did win the league, and did so incredibly comfortably too.
I have strong hope for life in the Championship, but am well aware of the fact that when I managed Huddersfield Town at this level, I started the season well only to fall away to a 19th place finish. Life in the Championship isn’t going to be easy, and we’ve only signed one new player; he’s a proven Championship goalscorer though, and should complement our current squad members well.
Several Oxford old timers have now found new clubs, and both Eddie Johnson and Luke Foster have now been let go to impress for their respective clubs in League One/Two. I could have held onto them and given them bit parts in my first season in the Championship with Oxford; I wanted more for them than that though, and therefore thought it best to find them new clubs, and allow them the first team experience that they so richly deserve. Both players served me well, and for that I thanked them by allowing them to move on and settle down elsewhere for increased first team opportunities. Jamie Guy was another that I found a new club, providing him with a move to Blackpool to continue his footballing life in League One.
It’s a time of great change as Oxford moves onwards and upwards, and although Rudi Skacel remains; the majority of our older players have now moved on, and a more youthful Oxford team will now look to conquer all in the Championship.
24 goals from Emile Sinclair and 23 from Roy Davis saw that we were promoted with style, and losing just 4 league games all season whilst winning 31 of the 46; we were most definitely a formidable force to be reckoned with.
Here's how the final League One table looked:
Five new signings became first team favourites, and three of them were signed from our former parent club Leeds. Leeds decided to cut the tie when we entered the same league, and with the board having failed to find a suitable feeder club we therefore no longer have one; even without loan players from a higher level parent team I feel that we’ll do well in the Championship though, and our pre-season results suggest that we may even have a shot at promotion.
In pre-season we beat Watford 2-0, Leeds United 1-0, and even achieved a 2-1 victory over last year’s Championship winners Reading. Reading won the league by a clear margin of 15 points last season, and although I somewhat doubt that we too will achieve such success; I do feel that we’ve got a good chance in the league, and that a play-off place could well be a possibility.
Despite the positives, it wasn’t all fun and games last season though; we lost to Derby County in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy final, and I therefore failed in my aim to do as I did with Huddersfield in winning the trophy twice. Still; we reached Wembley for the second time in three seasons, and although we didn’t win the cup, we did win the league, and did so incredibly comfortably too.
I have strong hope for life in the Championship, but am well aware of the fact that when I managed Huddersfield Town at this level, I started the season well only to fall away to a 19th place finish. Life in the Championship isn’t going to be easy, and we’ve only signed one new player; he’s a proven Championship goalscorer though, and should complement our current squad members well.
Several Oxford old timers have now found new clubs, and both Eddie Johnson and Luke Foster have now been let go to impress for their respective clubs in League One/Two. I could have held onto them and given them bit parts in my first season in the Championship with Oxford; I wanted more for them than that though, and therefore thought it best to find them new clubs, and allow them the first team experience that they so richly deserve. Both players served me well, and for that I thanked them by allowing them to move on and settle down elsewhere for increased first team opportunities. Jamie Guy was another that I found a new club, providing him with a move to Blackpool to continue his footballing life in League One.
It’s a time of great change as Oxford moves onwards and upwards, and although Rudi Skacel remains; the majority of our older players have now moved on, and a more youthful Oxford team will now look to conquer all in the Championship.
Oxford Win the Johnstone's Paint Trophy and Finish the Season 7th in League One
Having twice won the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy during my time as manager of Huddersfield Town; I’ve now added to my trophy cabinet with a third Johnstone’s Paint Trophy win, this time with Oxford.
Unlike when I managed Huddersfield though, with Oxford I wasn’t able to win the trophy in normal time, and it did in fact take penalties to defeat my fellow finalists Crewe Alexandra. 1-1 the game finished, Oxford took the lead when Aidan Stapleton scored in the 13th minute, but Crewe would later equalise through Martin Paterson in the 51st minute of the match. The game ultimately went to penalties, and it was my Oxford team that won through with a 4-1 penalty shoot-out victory.
It was Emile Sinclair who scored the winning penalty for Oxford; a man that is still yet to score for the club in normal play. Brought in as a replacement for Jamie Guy that just couldn’t seem to find the net last season; Sinclair appeared 11 times for the club last season, failing to score in any of the games that he played. Jamie Guy meanwhile was given a free transfer to Plymouth, scoring 10 times in 22 appearances. Guy wasn’t able to do a lot for us last season, he helped Plymouth rise up the table though, and the player we replaced him with sadly flopped.
Fast forward to the 2015/16 pre-season campaign and Jamie Guy has returned on a free transfer, Emile Sinclair is being moved to the left wing, last season’s top scorer Luke Hobbs has now been signed, and his strike partner Vince Asante has sadly moved to Norwich. We finished in 7th last season, just outside the play-offs, but this season we’ll be looking to go one better and actually make the play-offs/hopefully achieve promotion. Last season problems arose when nine of our first team squad were out injured, and most importantly; Luke Hobbs became unavailable. Without Hobbs in the team the goals just weren’t flowing, and although at one point we were pushing for automatic promotion, injuries saw us slide down the table and fail to make the play-offs by a single point.
Here’s last season’s league table:
We now have a few new players in the squad, have let go a couple that weren’t needed, and I feel that the quality and depth of our squad is now far greater than it was last season, so if we do once more suffer from mass injury then hopefully we’ll be able to cope, and not plummet down the table as was the case last campaign.
We’ll be looking to win the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy again this season, and whilst an automatic promotion place would be preferable; I’ll be more than happy if we can get in the play-offs, and if promotion can be achieved then that really will be amazing.
Last season I was offered jobs with such Premier League clubs as Cardiff City, Fulham, and Newcastle United; I must say that I was very tempted at times to jump ship and once more try my hand at managing a Premier League team; I’ve still a job to do at Oxford though, and until we’re promoted to the Championship I’m remaining at the Kassam.
Unlike when I managed Huddersfield though, with Oxford I wasn’t able to win the trophy in normal time, and it did in fact take penalties to defeat my fellow finalists Crewe Alexandra. 1-1 the game finished, Oxford took the lead when Aidan Stapleton scored in the 13th minute, but Crewe would later equalise through Martin Paterson in the 51st minute of the match. The game ultimately went to penalties, and it was my Oxford team that won through with a 4-1 penalty shoot-out victory.
It was Emile Sinclair who scored the winning penalty for Oxford; a man that is still yet to score for the club in normal play. Brought in as a replacement for Jamie Guy that just couldn’t seem to find the net last season; Sinclair appeared 11 times for the club last season, failing to score in any of the games that he played. Jamie Guy meanwhile was given a free transfer to Plymouth, scoring 10 times in 22 appearances. Guy wasn’t able to do a lot for us last season, he helped Plymouth rise up the table though, and the player we replaced him with sadly flopped.
Fast forward to the 2015/16 pre-season campaign and Jamie Guy has returned on a free transfer, Emile Sinclair is being moved to the left wing, last season’s top scorer Luke Hobbs has now been signed, and his strike partner Vince Asante has sadly moved to Norwich. We finished in 7th last season, just outside the play-offs, but this season we’ll be looking to go one better and actually make the play-offs/hopefully achieve promotion. Last season problems arose when nine of our first team squad were out injured, and most importantly; Luke Hobbs became unavailable. Without Hobbs in the team the goals just weren’t flowing, and although at one point we were pushing for automatic promotion, injuries saw us slide down the table and fail to make the play-offs by a single point.
Here’s last season’s league table:
We now have a few new players in the squad, have let go a couple that weren’t needed, and I feel that the quality and depth of our squad is now far greater than it was last season, so if we do once more suffer from mass injury then hopefully we’ll be able to cope, and not plummet down the table as was the case last campaign.
We’ll be looking to win the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy again this season, and whilst an automatic promotion place would be preferable; I’ll be more than happy if we can get in the play-offs, and if promotion can be achieved then that really will be amazing.
Last season I was offered jobs with such Premier League clubs as Cardiff City, Fulham, and Newcastle United; I must say that I was very tempted at times to jump ship and once more try my hand at managing a Premier League team; I’ve still a job to do at Oxford though, and until we’re promoted to the Championship I’m remaining at the Kassam.
Back-to-Back Promotions for Oxford
Having achieved promotion to League Two via the Blue Square Premier play-offs in the 2012/13 season; I was pleased to once more gain promotion the following season. Oxford had not been expected to achieve promotion from League Two; due to some strong performances from frontmen Luke Hobbs and Vince Asante though, the team was therefore able to move up the league and actually finish the 2013/14 season as champions.
For the second season running Chris Carruthers was named Fans Player of the Year, and in addition to this I also managed to win the League Two Manager of the Year award. Loanee Luke Hobbs finished the season as Oxford’s top scorer with 21 goals, with Eddie Johnson contributing 12, and Vince Asante finding the net 16 times in 31 appearances.
Eddie Johnson had been the club’s top scorer with 31 goals in the Blue Square Premier promotion season; with attacking options covered for the League Two campaign though he therefore dropped into a central midfield role for much of the season.
Loan players and free transfer signings played a huge part in Oxford’s success, with experienced goalkeeper Matt Glennon joining from Huddersfield, Rudolf Skacel signing for free from Burnley, Adam Prince being released by Wigan, and Jamie Guy signing on a free transfer from Shamrock Rovers in the January transfer window in order to increase the options in attack. All players that signed for the club performed incredibly well throughout the season, and it was the exciting free transfer signings and on-loan attacking duo that sealed many of Oxford’s 88 points for the season.
It all went right down to the wire, and with one game to go Oxford and Port Vale were level on points, with Port Vale having a distinct goal difference advantage. Oxford’s final game was against Grimsby, Port Vale meanwhile had to play Kidderminster Harriers who had already been relegated. Eddie Johnson put Oxford in the lead after just 14 minutes, Port Vale went ahead just three minutes later though and it looked as though any Oxford victory would ultimately count for nothing in the title race. Kidderminster pulled one back before half time though, and sealed victory in the 68th minute of the match. Vince Asante scored two more goals for Oxford providing a 3-0 final day victory, and we therefore won the league by a clear three point margin.
With Wrexham having won the league the previous season with Oxford left to secure promotion from the Blue Square Premier via the play-offs; the roles were reversed in League Two, and Wrexham, finishing in seventh, went on to win the play-off final on penalties against Chesterfield.
Not only did Oxford win the league in the 2013/14 season, but also had a supreme cup run which took the team to the 4th Round of the FA Cup. The most satisfying win in the cup run was a 4-0 3rd Round demolition of MK Dons at the Kassam. The Dons were floundering in the league at the time, and with Oxford thriving on all fronts we were really able to show up the supposedly superior team from two leagues above.
For me, Luke Hobbs was the absolute star of the season, and he’s therefore been brought back on loan from Bristol City for life in League One. More signings have been made, the squad has again been strengthened, and Oxford will now look to do as strongly as possible in League One.
Can I now achieve my third promotion in three seasons with Oxford United? I certainly believe we’ve got what it takes to put up a serious challenge, and will now be looking to dominate as many League One matches as possible.
For the second season running Chris Carruthers was named Fans Player of the Year, and in addition to this I also managed to win the League Two Manager of the Year award. Loanee Luke Hobbs finished the season as Oxford’s top scorer with 21 goals, with Eddie Johnson contributing 12, and Vince Asante finding the net 16 times in 31 appearances.
Eddie Johnson had been the club’s top scorer with 31 goals in the Blue Square Premier promotion season; with attacking options covered for the League Two campaign though he therefore dropped into a central midfield role for much of the season.
Loan players and free transfer signings played a huge part in Oxford’s success, with experienced goalkeeper Matt Glennon joining from Huddersfield, Rudolf Skacel signing for free from Burnley, Adam Prince being released by Wigan, and Jamie Guy signing on a free transfer from Shamrock Rovers in the January transfer window in order to increase the options in attack. All players that signed for the club performed incredibly well throughout the season, and it was the exciting free transfer signings and on-loan attacking duo that sealed many of Oxford’s 88 points for the season.
It all went right down to the wire, and with one game to go Oxford and Port Vale were level on points, with Port Vale having a distinct goal difference advantage. Oxford’s final game was against Grimsby, Port Vale meanwhile had to play Kidderminster Harriers who had already been relegated. Eddie Johnson put Oxford in the lead after just 14 minutes, Port Vale went ahead just three minutes later though and it looked as though any Oxford victory would ultimately count for nothing in the title race. Kidderminster pulled one back before half time though, and sealed victory in the 68th minute of the match. Vince Asante scored two more goals for Oxford providing a 3-0 final day victory, and we therefore won the league by a clear three point margin.
With Wrexham having won the league the previous season with Oxford left to secure promotion from the Blue Square Premier via the play-offs; the roles were reversed in League Two, and Wrexham, finishing in seventh, went on to win the play-off final on penalties against Chesterfield.
Not only did Oxford win the league in the 2013/14 season, but also had a supreme cup run which took the team to the 4th Round of the FA Cup. The most satisfying win in the cup run was a 4-0 3rd Round demolition of MK Dons at the Kassam. The Dons were floundering in the league at the time, and with Oxford thriving on all fronts we were really able to show up the supposedly superior team from two leagues above.
For me, Luke Hobbs was the absolute star of the season, and he’s therefore been brought back on loan from Bristol City for life in League One. More signings have been made, the squad has again been strengthened, and Oxford will now look to do as strongly as possible in League One.
Can I now achieve my third promotion in three seasons with Oxford United? I certainly believe we’ve got what it takes to put up a serious challenge, and will now be looking to dominate as many League One matches as possible.
Why I Quit Huddersfield for Oxford
The reason I quit Huddersfield to manage a team from three leagues below is really quite simple; I felt that I’d taken Huddersfield Town as far as I possibly could, and have also always been a massive fan of Oxford.
I was born and bred an Oxford United fan, and quitting Huddersfield for Oxford was therefore a pretty easy decision for me to make. Had I guided Huddersfield to the Premier League then I definitely wouldn’t have left, the fact of the matter is though that I lacked the strength in depth to achieve anything massively impressive at Huddersfield, and although I did win the League One play-offs in my second season in charge, and at one stage look as though I was going to make the play-offs in the Championship also; a poor string of results saw my club slump to a finishing position of 19th, and even in finishing as high as that we probably overachieved.
I had a few decent players at Huddersfield, overall though my squad just wasn’t good enough for the Championship, and when key players were injured we just didn’t have any adequate players to cover them. What’s worse was that my wage budget was massively cut for my second season in the Championship, and this therefore would have meant that I’d have needed to axe some of my top stars, and rely on my inadequate cover in order to keep my team in the Championship. I desperately needed to sign some new players, but that just wasn’t an option, and the only way I saw the club heading was down.
With Oxford I have a fresh opportunity to work my magic, and a chance to once again achieve promotion. Oxford has never left the Blue Square Premier in the game so far, but my aim is to change that, to help my club become bigger and better, and to restore my interest in Football Manager by giving myself a fresh challenge. I like to manage for as many seasons possible once I’ve started a career in Football Manager, and don’t like to just start up a new save game once I’ve put so many hours into a career.
Taking on Oxford United is a way for me to breathe a burst of fresh life into my Football Manager career, and hopefully it’ll now do the trick and I’ll be able to achieve success with Oxford.
I was born and bred an Oxford United fan, and quitting Huddersfield for Oxford was therefore a pretty easy decision for me to make. Had I guided Huddersfield to the Premier League then I definitely wouldn’t have left, the fact of the matter is though that I lacked the strength in depth to achieve anything massively impressive at Huddersfield, and although I did win the League One play-offs in my second season in charge, and at one stage look as though I was going to make the play-offs in the Championship also; a poor string of results saw my club slump to a finishing position of 19th, and even in finishing as high as that we probably overachieved.
I had a few decent players at Huddersfield, overall though my squad just wasn’t good enough for the Championship, and when key players were injured we just didn’t have any adequate players to cover them. What’s worse was that my wage budget was massively cut for my second season in the Championship, and this therefore would have meant that I’d have needed to axe some of my top stars, and rely on my inadequate cover in order to keep my team in the Championship. I desperately needed to sign some new players, but that just wasn’t an option, and the only way I saw the club heading was down.
With Oxford I have a fresh opportunity to work my magic, and a chance to once again achieve promotion. Oxford has never left the Blue Square Premier in the game so far, but my aim is to change that, to help my club become bigger and better, and to restore my interest in Football Manager by giving myself a fresh challenge. I like to manage for as many seasons possible once I’ve started a career in Football Manager, and don’t like to just start up a new save game once I’ve put so many hours into a career.
Taking on Oxford United is a way for me to breathe a burst of fresh life into my Football Manager career, and hopefully it’ll now do the trick and I’ll be able to achieve success with Oxford.
Currently Managing: Oxford United
Season: 2021/22
League: Premier League
Final Position: 5th
Played: 38
Points: 69
Top Scorer: Shaun Goddard (44)
Highest Avg. Rating: Shaun Goddard (7.45)
Fans Player of the Year: Shaun Goddard
FA Cup: Final (Lost 4-2 to Man City)
League Cup: Semi-Final (Lost 1-1 on GD to Arsenal)
Community Shield: Lost on Pens. against Man City)
Europa League: Winners (Defeated Bayer Leverkusen 2-1)
European Super League: Winners (Defeated Arsenal 1-0)
Oxford United First Team
Goalkeepers
Rob Eames
Tommy Evans
Defenders
Andy Taylor
Jake Wright
Joel Lynch
William Hall
Ritchie Archer
Stuart Burns
Paul Jarvis
Midfielders
Richard Blair
Rudolf Skacel
Jon Charles
Oliver Norwood
Adam Walker
Jorrin John
Matthew Kelly
Keiron French
Craig Fagan
Carl Powell
Strikers
Jamie White
Luke Hobbs
Emile Sinclair
Matt Kemble
Roy Davis
Previous Seasons:
Season: 2018/19
League: Premier League
Final Position: 11th
Played: 38
Points: 47
Top Scorer: Luke Hobbs (18)
Highest Avg. Rating: Luke Hobbs (7.11)
Fans Player of the Year: Rob Eames
FA Cup: Winners (Defeated West Ham 15-14 on Pens. in the Final)
League Cup: 3rd Round (Knocked out 2-1 by Cardiff City)
Season: 2017/18
League: Championship
Final Position: 1st (Champions)
Played: 46
Points: 82
Top Scorer: Luke Hobbs (15)
Highest Avg. Rating: Rob Eames (7.16)
Fans Player of the Year: Rob Eames
Championship Manager of the Year: Richie Leigh
FA Cup: 6th Round (Knocked out 2-1 by Tottenham)
League Cup: 2nd Round (Knocked out by Reading 5-4 on Pens.)
Season: 2016/17
League: League One
Final Position: 1st (Champions)
Played: 46
Points: 104
Top Scorer: Emile Sinclair (24)
Highest Avg. Rating: Emile Sinclair/Oliver Norwood (7.20)
Fans Player of the Year: Oliver Norwood
League One Manager of the Year: Richie Leigh
FA Cup: 4rd Round (Knocked out 2-0 by Fulham)
League Cup: 2nd Round (Knocked out 2-0 by Cardiff City)
Johnstone's Paint Trophy: Runners-Up (Lost the final 3-2 against Derby County)
Season: 2015/16
League: League One
Final Position: 11th
Played: 46
Points: 70
Top Scorer: Jamie Guy (10)
Highest Avg. Rating: Oliver Norwood (7.19)
Fans Player of the Year: Oliver Norwood
FA Cup: 3rd Round (Knocked out 1-0 by MK Dons in Replay)
League Cup: 1st Round (Knocked out 3-0 by Leicester City)
Johnstone's Paint Trophy: Winners (Defeated Crewe Alexandra 4-1 on Pens.)
Season: 2014/15
League: League One
Final Position: 7th
Played: 46
Points: 77
Top Scorer: Luke Hobbs (22)
Highest Avg. Rating: Andrew Nicholas (7.23)
Fans Player of the Year: Oliver Norwood
FA Cup: 3rd Round (Knocked out 1-0 by MK Dons in Replay)
League Cup: 1st Round (Knocked out 3-0 by Leicester City)
Johnstone's Paint Trophy: Winners (Defeated Crewe Alexandra 4-1 on Pens.)
Season: 2013/14
League: League Two
Final Position: 1st (Champions
Played: 46
Points: 88
Top Scorer: Luke Hobbs (21)
Highest Avg. Rating: Luke Hobbs (7.17)
Fans Player of the Year: Chris Carruthers
League Two Manager of the Year: Richie Leigh
FA Cup: 4th Round (Knocked out 2-1 by Leicester City)
League Cup: 1st Round (Knocked out 2-0 by West Ham United)
Johnstone's Paint Trophy: 2nd Round (Knocked out by Shrewsbury 5-3 on Pens.)
Season: 2012/13
League: Blue Square Premier
Final Position: 2nd (Promoted Via Play-Offs)
Played: 46
Points: 87
Top Scorer: Eddie Johnson (31)
Highest Avg. Rating: Aidan Stapleton (7.32)
Fans Player of the Year: Chris Carruthers
FA Cup: 1st Round (Knocked out 2-0 by MK Dons)
FA Trophy: Winners (Defeated AFC Wimbledon 4-1)
Setanta Shield: Semi-Final (Knocked out by York City on Pens.)
