Hello again! We’re back with Frank Athlete as he looks to build on last season’s push for European football at Sparta Rotterdam. He’ll be hopeful that despite financial constraints affecting his transfer budget, he’s got enough quality in the squad to push on and go one better than last year. Let’s see what he can do this time around…
Season Summary
Team: Sparta Rotterdam
Division: Eredivisie
Season: 2026/27
Players in: Bram Lagae, AA Gent (€0); Liviano Comenencia, PSV (€0); Lin I-ming, Manchester City (€0); Mathias Dewaele, Club Brugge (Loan - €375K fee); Romain Sabater, unattached (€0); Charlie Setford, Ajax (€14.5K), Robin Horst, unattached (€0)
Players out: Jafar Bynoe, Vaduz (€50K); David Garden, De Graafschap (€61K); Mourad Bakir, De Graafschap (€175K); Mario Engels, SVS 1916 (€0); Jasper van der Burgt, PEC Zwolle (€235K); Anass Salah-Eddine, Helmond (€51K); Maduka Okoye, Borussia Monchengladbach (€3.6M)
Fresh from their challenge for European football, Frank set to work with his backroom team to ascertain which areas needed strengthening over the Summer. With the club needing to pay back the loan for the new stadium, budget’s were tight to say the least, with the Board granting a small increase for wages and a big fat “0” for transfers. The average age of the squad was still very high, and strength in depth was a major issue too, particularly in defence. In come Lagae (DC), Comenencia (DR) and Sabater (DL) to offer some alternative options at the back, although none of them are expected to usurp any of the starting back line.
In central midfield, I-ming (MC) joins as cover for last season’s star performer, Meffert, while Horst (MC) was a last minute acquisition to give a different kind of play maker in the middle. Dewaele brings pace and technique to the left side of attack, and finally Selford was brought in to deputise for Okoye, and eventually replace him.
In terms of outgoings, a lot of “dead wood” was moved on, all for a profit which the club absorbed to assist with the stadium loan repayments. On Transfer Deadline Day, an audacious bid of €3.6M came in from Borussia Monchengladbach for Maduka Okoye. Selling the number one goal keeper was a huge risk but the financial aspect of the deal was too good to refuse and so, with some persuasion from Okoye himself as well, Frank begrudgingly agreed. Selford would take on the number 1 shirt a little earlier than planned.
The Board’s ambition fort he season was about as impressive as the transfer budget they offered. Frank was asked to avoid relegation, but after some discussion with the squad, they agreed they were capable of pushing for a mid-table finish.
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After a decent pre-season in which the team were unbeaten after six games, scoring 20 and conceding just once, the season proper got under way with a tricky away tie against Willem II. Sparta Rotterdam never really got going and the game ended in a 3-1 defeat, before a resurgence in the first home game of the season against ADO Den Haag where they were comfortable 2-0 winners. Another loss on the road next, this time at the hands of Heracles Almelo which was immediately followed by a second consecutive home win against PEC Zwolle (and on Frank’s birthday no-less) to see the side move up to 8th in the league.
The next few weeks were rough. It would be 71 days before the club would bag their next win, losing five in a row and drawing twice in the process. The run included defeats to PSV and Ajax, but also to VVV-Venlo, and the results had seen De Kasteelmen slide to 15th in the table. Sandwiched in the middle was also an early cup exit in the first round as well, a 2-1 defeat to Frank’s previous team, FC Dordrecht, with all the goals coming in the first half.
The November international break seemed to come at just the right time, and on their return the lads secured three successive wins against FC Groningen, RKC Waalwijk and NAC Breda, before a draw at home to FC Utrecht, and an impressive away win at Vitesse. The annual defeat to Feyenoord finished up the schedule for 2026, leaving them in 10th place before the Winter Break.
A quiet January Transfer Window didn’t include any new signings, but did see Roemeratoe depart for Swiss outfit Thun having complained about a lack of game time. When the season restarted, Sparta Rotterdam were met with the unusual scheduling of the same team in successive matches. A draw away to AZ led to a home win in the reverse fixture to keep their good form going, before another win in the next game against ADO Den Haag would be enough to see them climb to 9th.
Defeats in the next three matches was a bitter blow to the momentum the side had built up, and although a win in the next game against NAC Breda seemed to halt the slide, it would lead to a period of mixed results with further wins against VVV Venlo and NEC Nijmegen alongside defeats to PSV and Ajax.
Heading into April, there were six games remaining and still a lot to play for, with an outside chance of European qualification also on the table. Unfortunately, Sparta Rotterdam sat stranded in 11th and managed just three points from all six games, slumping to 13th place on the final day of the season having been defeated (again!) by Feyenoord.
It was a disappointing end to a lacklustre campaign and as the season drew on, speculation had been growing that Frank’s contract, due to expire at the end of the year, would not be renewed. He had taken some time to reflect on his position at the club as the season ended, ultimately wondering whether he would be able to take them to the next level given the state of the finances. With less than a month remaining on his current deal, the Board did present a renewal offer, however given the length of time they’d kept him waiting, Frank had already made the decision to leave the club and so declined to negotiate the contract.
Keen for a new challenge, Frank began looking at potential roles outside of the Netherlands. Although none were vacant, there were plenty of clubs of the right stature along the Rhine that would be a good fit, and so he kept a close eye on how things fared as he looked to further his career and continue his own development elsewhere.
Results Overview
Dutch Cup
Prediction: Second Round
Actual: First Round
Summary: For Sparta Rotterdam to to draw Dordrecht in the First Round should have made it a great occasion. It was a poor performance in the end, and Dordrecht were worthy winners.
Best moment: Maudo’s performance in central defence was a real highlight, but unfortunately it didn’t rub off on his defensive teammates.
Low moment: Once again we’re out in the first round which is a real disappointment, especially when up against lower opposition. We needed to be more bullish here but in truth, we made it easy for them.
Eredivisie
Prediction: 15th
Actual: 13th
Summary: A difficult season all things considered, with some brilliant moments and decent form giving way to some awful performances and abysmal results. In the end, they couldn’t build on last year’s foundations which was a shame.
Best moment: Between the end of October and the end of January we played 11 matches, winning 6, drawing 4 and losing just once. What a run!
Low moment: Ending the season with such a poor points return from the last six games was a real low moment. It was the difference between finishing in the top half and finishing in the bottom.
Frank’s Next Move
As discussed above, Frank opted not to renew his contract at Sparta Rotterdam after the Board took such a long time to offer him a new one. Without a job lined up, he’ll be keeping an eye on where his potential next club will be.
With that in mind, let’s remind ourselves of which clubs are based along the River Rhine, and get some thoughts on where Frank sees himself managing next. Since the start of this journey in the 2021/22 season, not many clubs have changed divisions for the 2027/28 season ahead.
FC Dordrecht we know were promoted under Frank, but have subsequently been relegated back to the Eerste Divisie where they finished in 12th place last year. Elsewhere Mannheim have been relegated to the Regional South West division below 3. Liga and Fortuna Dusseldorf were promoted to the Bundesliga and fought off a relegation scrap last season to survive for another year. Lastly, FC Schaffhausen have excelled in Switzerland and had been in the Super League until their recent relegation back down to the Challenge League.
Using the reputation score from FM21, I’ve opted to highlight the clubs which Frank wouldn’t consider in red, while in orange are the clubs that would be a bit of a sideways move. The clubs in blue are where Frank sees his best chance of progressing up the managerial ladder and finally, in white are the clubs that are beyond Frank’s reputation at the moment.
For the sake of variety, he’ll be discounting any offers from Dutch clubs so it’s improbable that he’ll go to Vitesse should they offer him the job in the future. The roles at RC Strasbourg and Fortuna Dusseldorf have been listed as ‘insecure’, either of which would be a good move, but in truth he’ll have to play a bit of a waiting game and see what becomes available.
Around the Grounds
In this section we share some of the other stories from elsewhere in the FM universe that have caught the eye this week…
RCDM: The Wings of Change - FM Adventure oversees a shake up at Mallorca, but will the results be any different in La Liga?
FM22 | Three seasons with the false central defender - FMRensie reveals what he was trying to achieve with his 2-3-3-2 set up and where he feels it worked well.
Valores Familiares – 2 – The Aristotle of Arequipa - FM Stag returns with the latest update from Chile as he reveals how the first half of the season has gone and what work needs doing as Colo Colo head into the second half of the season.
Spirit of ’86 – Vindication - RocksendFM returns for the fourth instalment of this series, and shares how Vejle fair in another season in the Danish Superliga
Ternana Calcio: Ljubiša Dragićević - FM Youth Intake takes us through the development and success of the man of the moment, Ljubiša Dragićević, who has really come in to his own at Ternana.
Do you have a blog that’s missing from the above list? Please send me the link on Twitter so I can have a read.
Thanks for reading this update, I really hope you enjoyed it. You’ll find more updates from me, as well as blogs from some other fantastic writers at CoffeehouseFM so make sure you check them out. Feel free to leave a comment below, or you can message me @fm_athlete if you feel like getting in touch.
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