Road to World Cup (For Football Fans)

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This is actually a true story, in which I'm playing as a football manager in an online football game (I only started to play today XD). Since the game is VERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRYYYYYYYY specific, I'll jus describe myself as a real manager managing a real football team. The story will probably be full of failure in the beginning as I expect to lose many matches before I start winning, but what I like best about this story is that I'm just as clueless as all of you are -dear readers- about what's going to happen. Fate is the real story teller in here, I'm only describing it
[Note: For those who are not very intrested in football or the story details you'll find these small black notes advicing you what to read ]
Hope you enjoy the journey as it will be constantly updated :



I started off as a completely inexperienced clueless guy who doesn't have any record in managing football teams. But when there is a will there's ALWAYS a way, believing in that say I decide to start with small league teams and keep the stakes low until I know EXACTLY what I'm getting myself into. The best leagues clubs and best leagues were all full normally, so my decision was for the best; Luckily I found an opening in the Austrian Première League but with teams from the bottom of the league table (the worst results). I finally decided that the 1000 miles trip begins with one step, so I made a contract with Austrian Football club SV Ried.

My terms where that I needed to get secure the team the 7th or higher place -in the league table- by the end of the League. We were only 10 clubs, so I hope as much as you are that my job would be easy to accomplish and surpass as well.
The 9 other clubs competing with me are:

You don't have to read this, it might be too specific for you

FK Austria Wien

Description: The most powerful football club in Austria full of talented players, this club always aims for the 1st place in the league.
Manager: [Matador]A talented potuguese person who's best achievement so far was to win 2nd place in the Austrian League with club Sturm Graz. Participated in other Leagues such as the spanish, english and portuguese but didn't achieve anything worth mentioning.

Red Bull Salzburg

Description: Also one of the best football clubs in Austria, always competing with FK Austria Wien for the wining title of the Austrian league.
Manager:[Wong] A chineese manager who won the last australian tournament with this very same team, will he be able to do it again?


FC Superfund

Description: A medium-hard team that ALWAYS must finish in the first 5 top places, althought not as stressed to win the league they would never let their guard down against weak teams from the bottom (me).
Manager:[Godoy] A VERY experienced brazilian manager who has participated in so many leagues from around the world, mostly coaching weak teams but the only significant team he coached won its league; That being Valencia CF in the spanish league.

SK Rapid Wien

Description: A MUCH tougher team than FC Superfund, usually found in the winning top 3 places of each Austrian league. Thought sometimes it has a bad habit of spoiling its victories with some defeats against weak clubs.
Manager:[Arda] A Turkish man who has participated in mostly russian leagues; His best achievement was to reach 2nd place with Spartak Moscow while asked to win the 1st place.

SV Mattersburg

Description: A weak club usually found in the bottom of the table, mostly loosing during the league games. Reports say that the team is hoping at least to reach 9th position to avoid being kicked out of the league.
Manager:[Dennis] An inexperienced Australian who participated only in one league and didn't achieve his team requirements.

SK Sturm Graz

Description: Not too different from the previous club, yet Sturm Graz is aiming at least for the 8th position with their new manager in whom they have high hopes.
Manager:[Weno] A hungarian manager who participated only once in the portuguese league, achieving 4th place with mediocre team Boavista FC.

FC Wacker Tirol

Description: The weakest club in the League probably, they will have to do outstanding changes if they're hoping to survive without ending up in the last/10th place by the end of the league.
Manager:[Champ] The MOST EXPERIENCED manager in the league from Netherland, with a long history full of trophies such as winning the swiss,uruguay and scottish league that he's just coming from. I expect that this man is just looking for a challenge by accepting the to manage the weakest club in the league.

Grazer AK

Description: One of those middle table league, neither great winners nor bad losers, just in the middle. But they're hoping to change that with the arrival of their new manager anyway....
Manager:[Nunes] A Portuguese manager hoping to make good results with the team, has the biggest number of leagues that he participated in. Best accomplishment was 3rd place twice then winning the US League and its cup

SCR Altach

Description: Another mediocre team in the middle of the table, there's nothing much to be said about it.
Manager:[Monlatisi] THE ONLY INEXPERIENCED manager as much as I AM, this guy never participated in any leagues before,he has a better team than me but he's the closest I'll ever get to starting equal

Note:Start reading again here

To sum up all that long boring analysis, I am the most inexperienced manager in this league + here's the order of the teams you expect from best to worse:

1- FK Austria Wien
2- Red Bull Salzburg
3- SK Rapid Wien
4- FC Superfund
5- Grazer AK
6- SCR Altach
7- SV Ried <<<<<<<<< (My team)
8- SK Sturm Graz
9- SV Mattersburg
10- FC Wacker Tirol

Yet, so far the league hasn't begun yet, but there's MUCH work to be done, stay tuned


(I REALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLY promise you all that the rest of the story will be MUCH MORE intresting)

 

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With the League start fast approaching, the newspapers started exciting the people about it; putting guesses and specualtions on what would be the results of the teams this year. The fixtures have been decided,and I needed to know which team will I be against in my first match, so here's what the article read (actual newspaper on the game site):

"Austria - The new football season is about to begin. All participating teams are in the final stages of preparation, and most teams have even hired a new manager. The fans have high expectations and the boards of all teams have set their goals. It should prove to be an exciting competition this season, all teams having their own qualities, begging the question which team will be off to the best start after the completion of their preparations. It's all in the hands of the new managers now. The managers of FK Austria Wien and Red Bull Salzburg have spoken to the board and know that their goal is to become the champion this season. That is a tough task, it will be all or nothing for them. If they fail to become the champs, the anger of the fans, the media and the board will be upon them. But if they succeed, they will be lauded as heroes and worshipped like immortal demi-gods by the fans. Football is and always will be an unpredictable game in which truly anything is possible.

Others, such as the manager of FC Superfund, have less reason for stressing out. The board of this team doesn't have such extremely high expectations. Which only makes sense, considering the quality of the players they have to work with is not quite as impressive as some other teams in this league. Nevertheless, their manager is looking towards the future of the team with great optimism.

Many professionals are putting their trust in the team of SK Rapid Wien, as their players seem exceptionally well-prepared this season. Of course, it remains to be seen whether or not this will pay off. In this case, too, success or failure will lie in the hands of their new manager, who has made a point of avoiding the media entirely up to now. Two other teams that are also worth mentioning are SV Mattersburg and SK Sturm Graz, who are giving off a rather disorganised impression and may well be considered the outsiders of this season. Time will tell!

Finally, there are the teams who have been stuck at the bottom end of the league for a while, and could be said to have the most to lose. FC Wacker Tirol will have to give their best just to stay in this league this season. Naturally, the board has made maintenance of their position in the league top priority. Hopefully, this fine club with its long-standing traditions will not end this season seeing their nightmare come true.

The season may not have started yet, but already it is speculated that this season will be a memorable one, in which the weaker as well as the stronger teams will have ample opportunity to entertain their fans and bring out all the potential the season has to offer. Come what may, let's hope the teams will display good sportsmanship, and the managers will demonstrate their skills as they lead their respective teams to optimal results. And above all, let's hope this season will have a worthy winner, displaying the kind of impressive attacking football that fans everywhere will be able to appreciate."

After reading that, I realised that neither my team nor myself were even mentionned in the article. A bit disappointing, but nothing unusual; I turn to the page of the Fixtures to find that the oppening match of the season will be between my team, and FK Austria Wien the best team in Austria.

"WHAT THE.....?" The bad luck stunned me for moment before I regainned consciecness, and estimate the hard work awaiting my team for this confrontation. The match would be in our stadium too, that might DESTROY my players' morale to lose in the oppening game on their ground right in front of their fans. So alot of work had to be done to avoid that disappointment that might accompany us for the rest of the season.

After meeeting my team players and observing them and their skills, I started to take some notes (I really did!) to decide who will be in the main formation, who will sit on the substitute bench, and who will be sold away. Off the whole team there were 4 distinguished players:

Gebaur: A talented GK from germany
Jank: The experienced 33 year old defender
Anyerschmid: The gifted midfield attacker
Brunmayr: Best striker and goalscorer for the team

They were all included in the main formation of course; but the team had no staff, and not enough money to get some making it a REAL problem for me.
Regretfully I put a few players in my "for sale" list at a convincing price, then agreed with sponsors to put their adds in the our football field during the game for a large sum of money (since it was the oppening game and it was in our stadium)

After FINALY raising enough money, I start to hire a staff consisting of 4 trainers (Attack-Middfield-Defence and Goalkeeper) along with 2 doctors (in case of injuries) and finally a psychiatrist in case the worst happens he will prevent the team's morale from dropping down.

Secretely after deciding the formation -in my mind- I spend those last days before the match training my team on a very careless attack tactic. Surely such a big team has sent spies to seek my formation to take the best possible action against it (u REALLY can do that in the game). So when they report what they've seen, I can only hope the portuguese manager falls for my trap and plays in a defensive way; he has stronger attack, but if i can trick him into defending i'll get a much better chance in winning the first match. BUT if he decides to attack carelessly as well I'll be in real trouble, it was either all or nothing. My real tactic is a defensive one and using counter attacks to score, that's my only chance.... but I won't change into that formation until seconds before the match

Only 2 days left till the opening game, I'm just hoping to make a good start in my career; Even a tie wouldn't be a bad result against the no.1 club in Austria.
So whoever's reading this please wish me luck .

(to be updated soon)

 

[Seyluv]

Whoa!!! You did so much typing, u really love football.

 

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The Countdown is nearly over, our first match is today. The players seem in good shape and morale, they will need all their efforts against he toughest club in the league. I finaly switched to my real formation, the time of truth has arrived. I also learned that today's referee is the ranked 1 in Austria, and isn't neither too strict nor easy going.

It also became clear, which of the teams will be easy to defeat and others that would be tough to play against. These a re today's fixtures:

SV Ried vs. FK Austria Wien
SK Sturm Graz vs. FC Wacker Tirol
FC Superfund vs. SV Mattersburg
SCR Altach vs. Red Bull Salzburg
Grazer AK vs. SK Rapid Wien

I also learnned the goal positions that these will clubs are hoping to achieve this year in the league:

FK Austria Wien & Red Bull Salzburg are aiming for 1st place
SK Rapid Wien & FC Superfund are hoping to reach the 3rd position
SK Sturm Graz & SV Mattersburg are competing for the 5th place
SV Ried (My team) & Grazer AK are hoping at least to get the 7th position
FC Wacker Tirol & SCR Altach are just aiming for the 9th position

That means that my main rival is portuguese manager [Nunes].

But aside from that, I must concentrate on taday's game more than anything because of its importance, wish me luck everyone.

I will describe how the match went as soon after it finishes.

 

[Luis]

FC Superfund

Description: A medium-hard team that ALWAYS must finish in the first 5 top places, althought not as stressed to win the league they would never let their guard down against weak teams from the bottom (me).
Manager:[Godoy] A VERY experienced brazilian manager who has participated in so many leagues from around the world, mostly coaching weak teams but the only significant team he coached won its league; That being Valencia CF in the spanish league.

 

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The Austrian League opening match:

SV Ried vs FK Austria Wien

Announcer:

Welcome to the first match of the season, every team is looking for a best possible start. Expectations of this match are leaning towards the dominant FK Austria Wien, who as usual are looking to win this league. This should be a great match, all the players are present without any injuries or bad moral to affect them; So let's hope it will be an enjoyable game.

The Home side SV Ried are playing with the defensive formation 5-4-1 hoping to posses the ball and play of coutner-attacks while the away side FK Austria Wien are playing in an attacking formation 4-3-3.

And here's the kick-off,

9' Defender Ertl {FK Austria Wien} tackles awkwardly and receives the first yellow card in the season.

25' Until now it has been a midfield battle between the 2 teams without many shots at either of the goals.

30' Midfielder Radomski {FK Austria Wien} is injured and unable to continue with only a foul awarded, the tenseness begins to rise between the 2 teams

30' Mila {FK Austria Wien} replaces the injured player and the match goes on.

45' The first half-time ends goalessly with possession mostly to SV Ried but shots on goal to FK Austria Wien's favor. Let's hope we can see better action in the 2nd half.

2nd HALF:

53" GOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAL!!!!!! Defender Ertl {FK Austria Wien} seized the chance in a corner to slip the ball through Gebaur's hand and giving his team the lead.

57' SV Ried I shaken by that goal and is wasting chances to get even

67' GOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAL!!!!!! Midfielder Vachousek {FK Austria Wien} scores for his side from a shot at the line of the penalty area.

70' Possession is in FK Austria Wien and many chances are being wasted, but SV Ried players aren't using this to their advantage.

86' Defender Jank {SV Ried} and team captain earns himself a yellow card after arguing with the referee's foul decision.

90' Full Time. Score: SV Ried - FK Austria Wien (0-2)

An expected result from both teams, with a disappointing start for SV Ried, but it's still a long way to go until they meet again.

Man of the Match: Ertl FK Austria Wien


Match Statistics:

Team -------------------- SV Ried ------- FK Austria Wien
Manager ------------- Red Diablos -------- Matador

Formation -------------- 5-4-1 ---------------- 4-3-3
Shots on target --------- 2 --------------------- 8
Accuracy ----------------- 0% ------------------- 24%
Fouls---------------------- 12 -------------------- 17
Yellow cards ------------- 1 --------------------- 1
Red cards ---------------- 0 ---------------------- 0
Corners ------------------- 0 --------------------- 4
Possession -------------- 40% ------------------ 60%

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So Matador didn't fall for my trick, but that was the best I could do in any case. If I had try to match his players man to man, I would've head even several more goals scored in me. But now, that loss is from the past and the worst is over; It's better to lose and learn from your mistakes sooner than later.

I took notes of the results of the first week matches:

SV Ried vs FK Austria Wien (0-2) {Ertl 53' ;Vachousek 67'}
SK Sturm Graz vs FC Wacker Tirol (1-0) {Rauter 9'}
FC Superfund vs SV Mattersburg (0-0)
SCR Altach vs Red Bull Salzburg (0-2) {Carboni 3' ; Janko 42'}
Grazer AK vs SK Rapid Wien (0-0)

The news came filled with headlines: Don't read it if you don't want to

"Delpierre exchanges VfB Stuttgart for FC Superfund"

PASCHING - Mathieu Delpierre will play for FC Superfund for the remainder of the season. After the chairman of VfB Stuttgart had given his approval, the transfer of Delpierre to FC Superfund was at last finalised. The defender will be playing for the team of Godoy until the end of the season. The manager referred to the fact that Delpierre was playing in a foreign country as an important argument for the transfer. "His experience in Germany may prove to be invaluable to us", according to Godoy.


"Wong wants to best Weno"

SALZBURG - Red Bull Salzburg versus SK Sturm Graz is one of the matches scheduled today. These teams are close, though Red Bull Salzburg is mildly favored by the bookmakers. Red Bull Salzburg may have a slight advantage, but don't count out SK Sturm Graz yet. With a manager like Wong, anything is possible. It has been proven in the past that less highly rated teams can yet be surprising. This is the likely reason why Verlaat did not seem completely confident that tonight's match would end in victory. The SK Sturm Graz player considered victory for his team "a must, but Red Bull Salzburg has proven before that they know how to handle pressure." weno is going to need to bring out his best in order to defeat Red Bull Salzburg.


"SV Ried places bets on Slider"

RIED IM INNKREIS - The name of the new manager of SV Ried is Slider. He has signed a contract lasting until the end of the season. The manager is driven to prove his abilities as a newcomer. With only one match worth of experience, considerable doubts have been raised about his capabilities. Silder has announced that he will clean up the squad, referring to the recent bad performance of SV Ried. "Under me, everyone gets a second chance", he said. "Those who fail to take advantage of it, will be dismissed." The season is still long, so he has time to prove his abilities.


"Results This Week"

1. SK Sturm Graz-FC Wacker Tirol 1-0
2. SV Ried-FK Austria Wien 0-2
3. FC Superfund-SV Mattersburg 0-0
4. SCR Altach-Red Bull Salzburg 0-2
5. Grazer AK-SK Rapid Wien 0-0

"League Table"

1. FK Austria Wien 3
2. Red Bull Salzburg 3
3. SK Sturm Graz 3
4. FC Superfund 1
5. Grazer AK 1
6. SK Rapid Wien 1
7. SV Mattersburg 1
8. FC Wacker Tirol 0
9. SCR Altach 0
10. SV Ried 0

"Squad of the Week"

Attack:Acimovic (FK Austria W)
Kollmann (Grazer AK)
Mayrleb (FC Superfund)
Midfield:Ketelaer (FC Superfund)
Vachousek (FK Austria W)
Mörz (SV Mattersbu)
Defense:Hiden (SK Rapid Wie)
Vargas (Red Bull Sal)
Sedloski (SV Mattersbu)
Ertl (FK Austria W)
GK: Arzberger (Red Bull Sal)

"Matches Next Week"

SV Mattersburg-Grazer AK
FC Superfund-SV Ried
SK Rapid Wien-SCR Altach
FC Wacker Tirol-FK Austria Wien
Red Bull Salzburg-SK Sturm Graz

[Start reading here, skippers ]
I had several thoughts after reading the newspaper:
1- My next match is against FC Superfund on their ground + they just bought themselves a great defender from a great team in germany
2- My rival Nunes made an important draw against tought oponents SK Rapid Wien
3- It's normal that no one of my team has reched the squad of the week list at all
4- This is my second tough match in a row, I must study my opponent well to make good results

I had already made offers on the transfer market before it closes, hoping to benefit as much as possible. our next match is another tough one against FC Superfund...

 

[Slider]

The next day after the match, I entered the club for my regular meeting with the board members and the investors. The results were normally unsatisfying, and we're basically summed up to:

Position Opinion
We are very unhappy with our current position in the rankings, being last place in the league can get you into serious trouble.

Economy Opinion
There may be sufficient funds available to attract some new players.

Last match
Despite the loss, we're doing better than the higher rated team of FK Austria Wien, but we would have preferred a victory over this opponent.

Then the meeting was over, and I left assuring them my best efforts to get better results.

During this week, training was even harder. Unfortunately I had to keep my team captain away from the main formation (because of his Yellow card) but I seized the opportunity to train him well since he won't have to worry about the match. I also kept making and looking for offers in the transfer market, hoping to make good use of it.

Unfortunately, I'm unable to find any openings at all against my opponent. The worst player in his midfield is equivalent to my best one, along with superb defense and good attacking players. Here are his most important players:

Gilewicz(ATK): A well known Polish striker
Kabat(ATK): A talented hungarian attacker as well
Chiquinho(MID): An extremely talented brazilian attacking midfielder, known for his free kick skills
Delpierre(DEF): The Famous french defender coming from the german league who's transfer made the headlines of the Austrian magazines

Other than Chiquinho having a yellow card, I just can't find any weak points in this team. I wouldn't expect less from the very experienced manager Godoy who changed this team into talented mercenaries from Brazil, Germany, Argentina, France, Poland and Cameroon.
If that wasn't enough, the match will be played on his stadium giving him home advantage....
Only 2 days left for this match, there must be something that can be done...

 

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My goal was mainly to try avoiding defeat, I decided the team formation and chose the players in the lineup and just hoped for the best. We traveled to FC Superfund's stadium, and it wasn't soon before the players started their second match:

FC Superfund vs SV Reid

Annonucer:

Welcome football lovers to the 2nd match of the season, the weather is a bit windy but still good to play football. Today's refree is ranked no. 2 in Austria who doesn't allow bad tackles, but who lets go of them sometimes too.
FC Superfund is confident about the game especially with its new joining stars, while SV Reid's formation isn't any different rather than the abscence of their team captain and best defender Jank.
FC Superfund's using an attacking tactic of 4-3-3 while SV Reid's plan is to try to posses the ball in a 4-4-2 plan. Let's get this match going:

3' GOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL, three minutes into the game and Polish striker Gilewicz FC Superfund already uses a defense mixup to his favor and scores the early goal.

26' So far FC Superfund is dominating this game.SV Reid are helpless

45' The first half ends with FC Superfund waisting too many chances to finish their oponents off. They should be kicking themselves in the dressing room.

HALF TIME SCORE: FC Superfund vs SV Reid (1-0)

SECOND HALF:

47' GOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL A header by international striker Radoslaw Gilewicz from an early corner makes the gap larger between the two teams.

52' A bad tackle from Schiker SV Reid leaves attacker Mayrleb FC Superfund with an ankle injury and Schiker recieves a yellow card. The medical staff helps the player out of the field, but no cards have been awarded.

52' Striker Krajic replaces the injured player

64' GOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL Maybe it was coincedence but in revenge for his injured partner, Krajic FC Superfund puts a header from a corner into Gebaur's net.

65' A terrible challenge chocking the crowd, leaves midfielder Michalik SV Reid unable to stand on his feet. Medical staff hurries in the field and carries th player out and tend his broken calf.

65' Manager Slider is forced to replace his key player with Brenner, his substitute.

92' A bad tackle for current team captain Angerschmid SV Reid earns him a yellow card needlessly at the end of the game. After the foul is played, the referee blows his whistle to end a very one sided match.

FULL TIME: FC Superfund vs SV Reid (3-0)

Man of the match: Radoslaw Gilewicz FC Superfund

Match Statistics:

Team --------------------- FC Superfund ------- SV Ried
Manager --------------------- Godoy ------------- Slider

Formation ------------------- 4-3-3 --------------- 4-4-2
Shots on target --------------- 7------------------- 2
Accuracy ---------------------- 42% ----------------- 0%
Fouls --------------------------- 14 ------------------ 13
Yellow cards ------------------- 0 ------------------- 2
Red cards ---------------------- 0 ------------------- 0
Corners ------------------------ 11 ------------------ 0
Possession ------------------- 78% ----------------- 22%

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Althought it was normal to lose because of the difference of player qualities in both our teams. The result affected me, as well as the sadistic injury to my key left wing player Michalik. I visited him as soon as the match was over and learnned from the team doctors that it would take him almost 6 weeks before he can see a football again. It was a real disappointment to me, I'll have to sacrifice large sum of money on his intensive treatments as well finding a replacment for him as soon as possible no matter the cost.

I took a look at the other teams' results on the news:

SV Mattersburg vs Grazer AK (0-1) {Noh 36'}
FC Superfund vs SV Ried (3-0) {Gilewicz 3'; Gilewicz 47'; Krajic 64'}
SK Rapid Wien vs SCR Altach (2-0) {Vorisek 69'; Valachovic 94'}
FC Wacker Tirol vs FK Austria Wien (0-2) {Sverkos 11'; Acimovic 91'}
Red Bull Salzburg vs SK Sturm Graz (4-0) {Carboni 1'; Lokvenc 4'; Linke 25'; Carboni 88'}

So the results were very normal aside from my rival team Grazer AK defeating the better team of SV Mattersburg. Nunes their manager is doing great in his matches so far.

My board meeting was similiar to the first one, my tough luck is considerated; but they're expecting me to turn the tables or I'll find myself in the street. Their impatience and concern was starting to show.

After all that, I finally recieved some great news from the transfer market. Several players of mine have been bought from famous international clubs (outside Austria) for large sums of money:

Drechsel has been bought by best scottish club Celtic. (€ 1'500'000)
Berger has been bought by Greek club Panathinaikos. (€ 790'000)
Eder has been bought by Belgium club AA Gent. (€ 685000)

Also, my offer for hungarian defender Bodnar has been accepted from Red Bull Slazburg. And the player has joinned my squad.

The league newspaper was out already, and it was full of new events:
I WON'T SAY IT EVERYTIME, YOU DO NOT HAVE TO READ THE NEWSPAPER

 

[Slider]

"FK Austria Wien kicks FC Wacker Tirol off the field"

INNSBRUCK - FC Wacker Tirol played a home match against FK Austria Wien. FK Austria Wien would have liked to handle the match against FC Wacker Tirol in a written fashion. "We're going to win anyway, this match is nothing more than a chance for injuries and suspensions", Matador claimed arrogantly. "We'll do all we can", responded soccer_champ stiffly.
In the 11th minute, FK Austria Wien took the lead. Sverkos personally saw to that. The margin was brought to two goals in the 91st minute by Acimovic: 0-2.
"Our training clearly paid off. Our win was clearly deserved", Matador said, smiling after the victory over FC Wacker Tirol. "FK Austria Wien was just a size too big for us, especially when in this kind of shape", was Champ's opinion.


"Grazer AK comes too soon for Mayrleb"

PASCHING - Christian Mayrleb will have to watch the upcoming away match against Grazer AK from the stands. The attacker of FC Superfund has suffered an inopportune achilles tendon injury. Godoy thankfully had little trouble in selecting a suitable substitute for Mayrleb to play in the upcoming away match against Grazer AK. "We have a broad selection of players", Godoy explained, "This enables us to compensate when these kinds of injuries occur."
"It's terrible", according to the attacker. "You feel so lonely when you have to train apart from the rest of the team."


"SV Ried up against FC Wacker Tirol"

RIED IM INNKREIS - Today, SV Ried and FC Wacker Tirol clash in the Austrian League. The prospect of SV Ried and FC Wacker Tirol facing off against one another caused a lot of additional police presense in Ried im Innkreis. Clearly, the authorities are not taking any chances. Despite the tense atmosphere preceding the matchup, it looks like it will be a beautiful football night. Gebauer of SV Ried said upon arrival that he was looking forward to the duel against FC Wacker Tirol. "Especially Pavlovic is a dangerous player that we'll have to watch out for", he said. Gebauer was still unsure if he would be playing tonight: "I hope so, but the line-up is all up to the manager", the team's star player commented.


"Spotlight: Matador"

WIEN - Matador has been the manager of FK Austria Wien this season. The 35-year old manager was appointed after last season's bad results. "The experience and ability of Matador are more than adequate", according to FK Austria Wien's board member of technical affairs. "At SK Sturm Graz, Anderlecht and Adelaide United FC he has already proven to be a good manager." FK Austria Wien was naturally pleased to be able to contract the Matador for their squad.
The performance of FK Austria Wien under Matador up to now is however not exactly something to write home about. The prestigious club currently has to settle for a disappointing second place in the rankings. The board has expressed their concern about the situation. "Even so, Matador is not the subject of discussion", the chairman recently said, "Although performance really needs to improve."


"Bodnar to depart from Red Bull Salzburg"

SALZBURG - Laszlo Bodnar can look forward to a new club. The 28-year old defender is to bring in 2.6 million euros. "This can be discussed", said Wong, the manager of Red Bull Salzburg. "The amount that we announced is merely an indication. We think a defender like Bodnar is certainly worth that much, but there's room for negotiation." Bodnar was not very happy to learn of the large sum of money Red Bull Salzburg expects to collect for him. "He wants to leave the club as soon as possible", his agent explained, "The high transfer sum is going to make that very difficult. I have my doubts that a club would be willing to shell out that kind of money."


"Squad of the Week"

Attackers: Gilewicz (FC Superfund)
Mayrleb (FC Superfund)
Kincl (SK Rapid Wie)
Midfielders: Carboni (Red Bull Sal)
Vorisek (SK Rapid Wie)
Radomski (FK Austria W)
Defenders: Knavs (Red Bull Sal)
Miyamoto (Red Bull Sal)
Muhr (SCR Altach)
Akoto (Grazer AK)
GK:Fornezzi (Grazer AK)


"Results This Week"

1. SV Mattersburg-Grazer AK 0-1
2. FC Superfund-SV Ried 3-0
3. SK Rapid Wien-SCR Altach 2-0
4. FC Wacker Tirol-FK Austria Wien 0-2
5. Red Bull Salzburg-SK Sturm Graz 4-0


"League Table"

1. Red Bull Salzburg 6
2. FK Austria Wien 6
3. FC Superfund 4
4. SK Rapid Wien 4
5. Grazer AK 4
6. SK Sturm Graz 3
7. SV Mattersburg 1
8. FC Wacker Tirol 0
9. SCR Altach 0
10. SV Ried 0


"Matches Next Week"

SCR Altach-SV Mattersburg
SK Sturm Graz-SK Rapid Wien
SV Ried-FC Wacker Tirol
Grazer AK-FC Superfund
FK Austria Wien-Red Bull Salzburg

END OF NEWSPAPER

So now Grazer AK will be facing my previous oponents, this should be a good comparison on how we're both doing against the same team. And this week is already the clash of the titans,FK Austria Wien vs.Red Bull Salzburg. This should be intresting and unpredictable, but my small experience tells me that the match will be won by FK Asutria Wien.

As for our next oponents, their easiest team to play against and it's in our field too. So losing or even drawing is NOT an option at any cost, I must grab this match by the throat and control it from the beginning before i can regret it.

At least the team captain is back and we have a new good defender on the team. But we still have a gap in the midfield that we'll have to cover well (because of Michalik's injury and not a good subsitute for him)

FC Wacker Tirol have good players such as:

Masek: A great attacker (better than my best one), but he has a yellow card already.
Kolousek: A great midfielder with attacking and defending capabilities.
Gruber: A insisting defender as good as my own Jank.
Pavlovic: An amazing goalkeeper from Croatia.

Champ has better players, but fewer than mine on the overall level. If I can use that to my advantage, I'll make good use of the match and win it. At least there's a real chance of winning this time.

Wish me luck fans, and I'll keep you updated.

 

[Slider]

Today is my third match, it's a must-win game because I'm playing against the weakest team in the league. Still they have the most experienced manager, but I tactic in this game was much more aggressive than the previous two games. He has a few talented players, so I won't give him a chance to control the game.

SV Ried vs FC Wacker Tirol


Teams best players: Home: SV Ried:

- Brunmayr (ATK) [Austria]
- Angerschmid (MID) [Austria]
- Jank (DEF) [Austria]
- Bodnar (DEF) [Hungary]
- Gebaur (GK) [Germany]

Away: FC Wacker Tirol:

- Masek (ATK) [Czech]
- Aganun (ATK) [Nigeria]
- Kolousek (MID) [Czech]
- Brzeczek (MID) [Poland]
- Hattenberger (MID) [Austria]
- Gruber (DEF) [Austria]
-Feldhofer (DEF) [Austria]
- Pavlovic (GK) [Croatia]

Annonucer:

Hello again football fans to the 3rd week of matches in the season. There is much rain here in SV Reid's stadium but still suitable to play. Our referee for the match is the strict ranked no. 2 in Austria, he was there in SV Reid's last game against FC Superfund. Today's game is between two teams struggling to rise from the bottom position in the league table, both lost there 2 games, but with goal difference; SV Reid is currently ranked last while FC Wacker Tirol is ranked 8th. Both teams are looking for victory, but that can happen to only one of them.
Manager Slider of SV Reid is using an attacking formation of 3-4-3 while Champ FC Wacker Tirol's manager settled for his usual 4-4-2, yet in an attacking way as well.
The rain is expected to slow the players' perfomance down, but let's hope we see an enjoyable game.

MATCH START:

7' GOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL Striker Damjanovic (SV Reid) follows up on a blocked shot with a powerful ball to mark his team's first goal in the league

27' Defender Knabel (FC Wacker Tirol) tackles hard, but instead of getting the ball he ends up with a yellow card

45' The first half ends with the teams performance close to each other, still in favor of SV Reid. Too many chances are being waisted from both sides.

HALF TIME SCORE: SV Ried vs FC Wacker Tirol (1-0)

SECOND HALF:

53' So far it's a midfield battle of possesion, FC Wacker Tirol's players are unable to breach SV Ried who on their turn are waisting many corners and shots.

63' GOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL Finaly making good use of the corner kick, first time appearance attacker Kastner (SV Ried) rests the ball brilliantly past Goalkeeper Pavlovic (FC Wacker Tirol) who had no chance of stopping it

80' FC Wacker Tirol are doing their best to get back in the game, but without avail all their shots are either outside or easy in Gebaur's (SV Ried) hands

90' The referee ends this match marking SV Ried's first 3 points in the league, the manager and the players are celebrating. Team captain Jank dedicates the match to the fans who saw the team lose in the first game and to abscent Slovakian midfielder Michalik who is treating his broken calf from his last match.

FULL TIME: SV Ried vs FC Wacker Tirol (2-0)

Man of the match: Christoph Jank (SV Ried)

Match Statistics:

Team ------------------------- SV Ried ------------------- FC Wacker Tirol
Manager ---------------------- Slider -------------------------- Champ

Formation ------------------- 3-4-3 ---------------------------- 4-4-2
Shots on target -------------- 13 -------------------------------- 7
Accuracy ---------------------- 15% ------------------------------ 0%
Fouls --------------------------- 13 ------------------------------- 15
Yellow cards ------------------- 0 -------------------------------- 1
Red cards ---------------------- 0 --------------------------------- 0
Corners ------------------------ 17--------------------------------- 5
Possession -------------------- 59% ------------------------------ 41%

************************************************** **************************************************

Finaly my team had won their first match, I'm happy with the victory but still that only means that we're not the worst team in the league which isn't enough for me. After celebrating, I gave my team a quick lecture that the win was expected and that it's still a long way to go. The team was the easiest opponent, but surely our next match will be much tougher. I watched the news at night to see how did the other teams do in their matches and here were the results:

SCR Altach vs SV Mattersburg (0-2) {Ratajczyk 20'; Hanikel 67'}
SK Sturm Graz vs SK Rapid Wien (1-0) {Salmutter 19'}
SV Ried vs FC Wacker Tirol (2-0) {Damjanovic 7'; Kastner 63'}
Grazer AK vs FC Superfund (0-1) {Gilewicz 52'}
FK Austria Wien vs Red Bull Salzburg (0-1) {Janko 58'}

The biggest surprise this week was SK Sturm Graz defeating SK Rapid Wien, Grazer lost only to one goal while I got 3 when playing against FC Superfund. That didn't sound good and the clash of the titans ended in Red Bull Slazburg's favour.

It was a happy meeting in the board room the next day, "Our current position is alright, but could be better" they told me,"An excellent result. We like to see our team win!" they added, but I had to promise more improvements to reassure them.

 

[Slider]

Newspaper headlines:


"SV Mattersburg easily defeats SCR Altach"

ALTACH - The players of SCR Altach prepared themselves for their home match against SV Mattersburg. Molnatisi manoeuvred his team into the underdog position: "SV Mattersburg has some great players. We'll have to show full dedication to put up a good fight against them."
Ratajczyk found the net first on behalf of SV Mattersburg in the 20th minute: 0-1. Hanikel scored for SV Mattersburg again in the 67th minute, bringing the score to 0-2, a comfortable margin of two goals.
"SV Mattersburg's victory was deserved", according to new manager Alfatino. "Especially because of the great tactics I decided on in advance. We clearly had the better chances in this match." Alfatino's analysis was indeed fairly accurate. Molnatisi has a lot of work to do after this defeat.


"FC Superfund nets MacDonald"

PASCHING - Sherjill MacDonald will make an immediate transfer to FC Superfund. The past has shown that players from Netherlands do not always succeed in our country. Godoy is not worried about that. "MacDonald is a mature player, who will settle in at FC Superfund just fine. He'd grown too big for AGOVV Apeldoorn, and needed to take the next step. I'm glad he was willing to take it here with us."


"SV Mattersburg puts Alfatino at the wheel"

MATTERSBURG - SV Mattersburg announced that Alfatino will be the team's new manager. The manager is still reasonably inexperienced, but according to the chairman of SV Mattersburg, that will not be a problem. "We know Alfatino well and his knowledge of football is considerable", he said. "We have full confidence in the ability of alfatino to make great things happen." alfatino will have to deal with a demotivated squad. The club from Mattersburg is currently only in the league. However, alfatino feels confident that he will be able to turn the tide. The manager will at least have plenty of time to make his plans bear fruit, as the season has only just begun.


"Dennis resigns from SV Mattersburg"

MATTERSBURG - The manager of SV Mattersburg has resigned due to his club's disappointing results. Dennis Abercrombie said it was regrettable that it had to end this way. "I was planning to strengthen this club by attracting some players from the youth team and foreign teams, creating a balanced mix of young and old", he explained. "But due to internal conflicts with high-paid players and the conservative board, that never realy got anywhere."


"SK Sturm Graz to play away match against SV Mattersburg"

MATTERSBURG - SV Mattersburg and SK Sturm Graz is bound to be an interesting clash. The prospect of SV Mattersburg and SK Sturm Graz facing off against one another caused a lot of additional police presense in Mattersburg. Clearly, the authorities are not taking any chances. Despite the tense atmosphere preceding the matchup, it looks like it will be a beautiful football night. Ratajczyk of SV Mattersburg said upon arrival that he was looking forward to the duel against SK Sturm Graz. "Especially Verlaat is a dangerous player that we'll have to watch out for", he said. Ratajczyk was still unsure if he would be playing tonight: "I hope so, but the line-up is all up to the manager", the team's star player commented.


"Squad of the week"

Attackers: Janko (Red Bull Sal)
Lokvenc (Red Bull Sal)
Hanikel (SV Mattersbu)
Midfielders: Pamminger (FC Superfund)
Santos (Red Bull Sal)
Chiquinho (FC Superfund)
Denfenders:Jank (SV Ried)
Chaile (FC Superfund)
Vargas (Red Bull Sal)
Dospel (SK Sturm Gra)
Goalkeeper: Arzberger (Red Bull Sal)


"Results This Week"

1. SCR Altach-SV Mattersburg 0-2
2. SK Sturm Graz-SK Rapid Wien 1-0
3. SV Ried-FC Wacker Tirol 2-0
4. Grazer AK-FC Superfund 0-1
5. FK Austria Wien-Red Bull Salzburg 0-1


"League Table"

1. Red Bull Salzburg 9
2. FC Superfund 7
3. FK Austria Wien 6
4. SK Sturm Graz 6
5. SK Rapid Wien 4
6. SV Mattersburg 4
7. Grazer AK 4
8. SV Ried 3
9. FC Wacker Tirol 0
10. SCR Altach 0


"Matches Next Week"

FC Superfund-SCR Altach
SK Rapid Wien-FK Austria Wien
SV Mattersburg-SK Sturm Graz
Red Bull Salzburg-FC Wacker Tirol
Grazer AK-SV Ried

End of newspaper

So I finaly get to duel my rival Nunes and his team Grazer AK, since he's been having much better results than me I am very determined to end this encounter in my favor. This is a good chance to start climing the league table, hopefully I'll do well in this next game

 

[Slider]

This match was a very important one, two teams and one spot to fight for Grazer AK and SV Reid; It was a completely unptrdictable duel even for the managers. Both team performance are almost the same, the weather is a little windy but you still feel the warm sunlight. Grazer AK's portuguese manager Nunes has been having much better results than I did; Holding SK Rapid Wien to a draw, and defeating SV Mattersburg and barely losing to SV Superfund. Me I lost to Austria Wien with 2 goals, then another loss against FC Superfund with 3 goals, finaly I got my first victory over the weakest club in the league.
The match was in his field so he also gets that advantage, I made him 2 offers to have his skilled midfielder from bosnia Muratovic, but he refused and kept asking for more money. He also had bought recently talented danish midfielder Due. I heard that his key striker Noh was injured but is being treated and will be present in the match.


Grazer AK vs SV Reid

Team best players: Home: Grazer AK

Noh (ATK) [South Korea]
Due (MID) [Denmark]
Muratovic(MID) [Bosnia]
Fornezzi (GK) [Slovenia]

Away: SV Reid

- Brunmayr (ATK) [Austria]
- Angerschmid (MID) [Austria]
- Jank (DEF) [Austria]
- Bodnar (DEF) [Hungary]
- Gebaur (GK) [Germany]

Announcer:

Welcome football fans to the 4th week of the season, today we have a very exciting match between 2 teams very hard to seperate. Both managers are looking for victory to climb the league table, and both are optimistic of how the match will go. SV Reid is still suffering the abscence of midfielder Michalik while Grazer AK's star striker Noh has just healed in time from his injury from the last match.
Manager Nunes is counting on his usual 4-4-2 attcking formation, while Slider uses his same tactic that won him his last match which is an attacking 3-4-3. The players look very excited and so is the crowd, so let's enjoy this duel:

MATCH START:

7' GOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL Attacker Damjanovic (SV Reid) makes good use of the corner and delivers the ball pass straight past Fornezzi (Grazer AK)

34' GOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL Team's experienced striker Brunmayr (SV Reid) shoots a ball from the penalty line and scores his first goal in the season. The gap is growing larger between the two teams now.

43' GOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL Korean stiker Noh (Grazer AK) puts a fast ball to the Gebaur's (SV Reid) right and gets his team back in the game.

45' A very exciting first half filled with goals and surprises, SV Reid surprised their opponents with the early goal but Grazer AK is starting to get back on its feet with the late goal. Will they turn the defeat into a victory or will SV Reid put an end to their hopes...

HALF TIME SCORE: Grazer AK vs SV Reid (1-2)

SECOND HALF:

55' Both teams are playing visciously now, and many fouls have been commited in only few minutes

61' The first victim is down, new hungarian defender Bodnar SV Reid steps out of the field with a groin injury, but only a foul was given

61' Defender Kablar forcefully replaces the injured player

72' Seo injures himself in the knee after a clash for the ball

72' Martinez goes in instead of the the korean midfielder

85' It's a midfield battle now, althought playing with less quality substitutes, SV Reid is holding out well against Grazer AK's attacks.

90' The game ends with a goalless second half, but a lot of aggresivness thought. Still no player had recieved any cards. A disapointing loss to Grazer AK, they will want to make up for that match in their next one. SV Reid's players are happy with the victory, but the manager is concerned about his increasing injured players.

FULL TIME SCORE: Grazer AK vs SV Reid (1-2)

Man of the Match: Jovan Damjanovic (SV Reid)

Match Statistics:

Team ----------------------- Grazer AK ---------------- SV Ried
Manager ------------------ Engº Nunes ------------- Red Diablos

Formation -------------------- 4-4-2 -------------------- 3-4-3
Shots on target --------------- 9 ------------------------- 13
Accuracy ---------------------- 10% ----------------------- 15%
Fouls --------------------------- 14 ------------------------- 21
Yellow cards ------------------- 0 -------------------------- 0
Red cards ---------------------- 0 -------------------------- 0
Corners ------------------------ 4 ------------------------- 13
Possession -------------------- 47% ---------------------- 53%

************************************************** **************************************************

It was great to win this match, but the cost was heavy. My midfield line isn't strong, add to it the long abscence of Michalik, and now Seo. It was also disappointing that my talented defender Kablar was injured as well.

As usual I went to check the other clubs' results:

FC Superfund vs SCR Altach (0-0)
SK Rapid Wien vs FK Austria Wien (1-0) {Bilic 53'}
SV Mattersburg vs SK Sturm Graz (2-0) {Jancker 25'; Wagner44'}
Red Bull Salzburg vs FC Wacker Tirol (1-0) {Lokvenc 73'}
Grazer AK vs SV Ried (1-2) {Damjanovic(Reid) 7'; Brunmayr(Reid) 34'; Noh(Grazer) 43'}

Surprisingly, FC Superfund was held to a draw by Wacker Tirol; FK Austria Wien is doing badly with their successive loss already; SV Mattersburg on the other hand, is doing very good with their new manager by winning the classic against rivals SK Sturm Graz.

The next day, I was greeted in the board meeting; It wasn't about the additional 3 points, but the significance of defeating of winning a rival club aiming for the same goal. I was told also good news about selling some players internationnally to other clubs which raises the funds and allows buying new players for the club.