Hello again from Düsseldorf where Frank Athlete is looking to build on last season’s top half finish as he makes a push for European football. Over the course of the upcoming season, he’ll also take charge of his 400th game in football management with the 2031/32 campaign his 5th in charge at the Fortunen. It’s been a great season, and has been so pleasing to see many of our young starlets begin to reach their potential. Let’s get to it…

Season Summary

Team: Fortuna Düsseldorf
Division: Bundesliga
Season: 2031/32
Players in: Stefan Kaplanović, Čukarički (€2.3M); Osmar Román, Chelsea (€6.5M); Roberto Jaramillo, América de Cali (€1.7M)
Players out: Florian Kastemeier, 1. FC Koln (€0); Matteo Meeus, Charleroi (€1.2M); Giuliano Bontempo, SpVgg Greuther Fürth (€1.6M); Pedro Malheiro, VTSC (€2.2M); Stefano Bifulco, Benevento (€1.8M)

The side’s 8th place finish last time out meant a slightly inflated prize packet for the club compared to previous years. The Board generously offered a transfer budget of €25M but thanks to the shrewd recruitment team, only a portion of that was used on new players. Stefan Kaplanović (DR) and Osmar Román (DL) join to provide competition in the full back areas, while wonderkid Roberto Jaramillo comes in from América de Cali and will play as an Inside Forward on the left hand side.

Several fringe players were moved on to make room in the squad, with Florian Kastenmeier (GK), Matteo Meeus (DC), Giuliano Bontempo (DL), Stefano Bifulco (DR) and Pedro Malheiro (AMR) all departing for a combined total of €7M. While this left Frank with a relatively small squad, it would mean managing playing time expectations would be that much easier to handle.

Despite a top half finish in the last campaign, the media were predicting a laboured 11th place finish this season, but Frank and his team had other ideas as they targeted that much coveted 7th spot which would open the door to Europa Conference League football.

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Dusseldorf’s 2031/32 season kicked off with an away win at FC Erzgebirge Aue in the DFB Pokal with the score 2-1 at full time to set up a Second Round tie against Eintracht Frankfurt at the end of October. As attention turned to the Bundesliga, the Fortunen got off to a shaky start in their opening games, taking two wins, a draw and three defeats by the end of September. The point taken at home to Stuttgart was a highlight, but the 1-0 defeat away at rivals 1. FC Koln was a tough one to swallow.

As they settled in to the season, the next run of games returned an impressive tally of 13 points from a possible 18, with the score lines telling even more of the story as they won 7-1 against Union Berlin, 5-0 against 1. FC Nurnberg and 5-2 against Borussia Monchengladbach. The loss to Hamburg was disappointing, but the draw away at Mainz 05 was quite the spectacle as the side came from two goals down to draw at full time. Sandwiched in between those wins was a comfortable 2-0 victory in the cup as well, and so the team could enjoy their reward of sitting in 7th spot in the league and await a Third Round cup fixture against Borussia Dortmund in the New Year.

Coincidentally, the first league game of December was also against Dortmund and they showed what they were about, beating Dusseldorf 2-0 which then gave way to another defeat, this time at the hands of Bayer 04, the first time this season the team had suffered consecutive losses. They bounced back in the next game against Hertha Berlin, before salvaging a 2-2 draw in the 92nd minute away at Frankfurt. As 2031 drew to a close, the side had slipped a place to 8th, but were still in contention for qualification to Europe via a 7th placed finish.

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The January Transfer Window was an uneventful affair with no first team signings in and no departures either. Frank took this as a win in itself as a number of the young players signed over the last few windows were proving they had the potential to perform at the highest level. In particular, Samuel Burbano and Roberto Jaramillo were delivering consistently alongside Isak Hansen-Aarøen and Daryl Dike, with many of the other players chipping in with goals and assists as well.

With the Winter Break over, January began with an impressive 2-1 win away at Stuttgart which was immediately followed by a customary defeat to FC Bayern with the score line at 2-0. Little did they know at the time, that this would be their last league defeat for 105 days as the following weeks and months would be among the most memorable and successful in the club’s history.

January was rounded off with a drab 0-0 draw to Darmstadt 98 and a superb win at home to RB Leipzig to see the side head into the Third Round cup game against Borussia Dortmund with renewed confidence. It was a close affair, but Jude Bellingham’s single goal was the difference on the day and it would be Dortmund who progressed to the Quarter Finals where they would eventually lose to Stuttgart after extra time.

With focus now firmly on the Bundesliga, the cup defeat proved to be a catalyst for improved performances all over the pitch and the results made for some great reading. Six wins from a possible seven and nineteen points secured through February and March saw the side climb to an unprecedented 4th place as they found themselves in danger of qualifying for the Champions League next year! Among the results were away wins at Wolfsburg (3-0) and Monchengladbach (2-0) as well as another hard fought draw against Mainz 05, with Renan’s equaliser coming in the 86th minute to make it 1-1.

As the season rolled into April, the side’s good form continued with another three wins and a draw secured, including a 3-1 victory over Bayer 04 and a well deserved draw away at Dortmund. This left Dusseldorf in 2nd place with two games to go, and with Champions League football already guaranteed for next season. An incredible achievement given the media’s pre-season prediction, and Frank’s own assessment of where they might get to.

The final two matches were nothing more than exhibition games. A loss to Hertha Berlin, the team’s first league defeat since mid-January, was followed by a win against Frankfurt. Dortmund managed a better points return and so they took 2nd place while the Fortunen secured 3rd place in a thrilling season, with little drama and some exceptional performances. Burbano’s 15 goals was enough to earn him the team’s joint top scorer alongside reserve forward Lazetic who bagged 5 goals in the last 4 games and always popped up when needed.

Among the accolades for Dusseldof’s strong performance in the league was a Manager of the Year Award for Frank himself. He accepted the award with grace, mumbling something about it being for the fans as he exited the stage.

Results Overview

DFB-Pokal

Prediction: Third Round

Actual: Third Round

Summary: A fairly lacklustre cup run in the end. We were hampered by being drawn against Dortmund but given our league form, i thought we were capable of winning, things just didn’t go our way.

Best moment: A nice, tidy win against Eintracht Frankfurt was very satisfying in the Second Round. We managed the game really well which was great to see.

Low moment: Of course, the defeat to Dortmund was disappointing. On paper they are a better side but on the day, they were poor. The problem was, so were we. Our defence put in a shift but in midfield and attack we really didn’t show up.

Bundesliga

Prediction: 11th

Actual: 3rd

Summary: It was an unbelievable season in the end, at times it seemed impossible to lose! I think the challenge will be how we maintain this level as we attempt to prove it wasn’t a fluke next season.

Best moment: The second half of the season was a real highlight with just three draws and two losses from January onwards

Low moment: The defeat to 1. FC Koln early in the season was a frustrating one as we were the better side but just couldn’t find the net. In the end it didn’t matter but at the time it felt like a big dent in our early season form.

Facts and Figures

It’s been a while since I shared the tactic we’ve been using, and over the course of the last few seasons it really hasn’t changed too much. The shift to playing two strikers has definitely seen a marked improvement in terms of chances created and goals scored, while the addition of the “Run at Defence” instruction compliments our dribbling ability, which many of the players in the squad are very adept at.

In comparison to the rest of the Bundesliga, we performed well in some key areas and ranked in the top six for Goals Scored (2nd with 71), Points per Game (3rd with 1.94), Shots For (5th with 508), Dribbles Made (3rd with 438) and Goals Conceded (6th with 36).

Financially, the club have never been in a better position. We’re extremely cash rich with €90M in the bank and that’s as a result of some big player sales in the last few seasons, coupled with our increased prize money as a result of our improved league finishes. We’ve also been very savvy in the transfer market, picking up cheap South American talent which in the vast majority of cases have proved more than capable of performing to a Bundesliga standard.

The main area of concern is our youth recruitment which has left a lot to be desired of late, and needs some investment if we’re to start bringing young players through the club and into the first team. We’ve upgraded our junior coaching and youth facilities which will helpful help with this endeavour.

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…

The Nigerian Gunman - Botev Plovdiv - FM Eadster returns with another update from the Efbet League as he looks to go one better than last season’ Europa Conference League qualification.

FM22 | Corner Kick strategy - FM Rensie sheds some light on his famous corner kick routines, and how best to set up when wanting to take advantage of a dead ball situation.

Casual Calcio | #6 | The (Likely) End Of An Era - Oaky_FM returns as he seeks to retain the Serie A title at Catania. Rumours are abound that this may be his last season at the club, but can he go out with a bang?

Northern Boys – Part IX - Madd FM shares the latest instalment from Tyneside as he attempts to return his Newcastle United side back to the top flight after two failed attempts.

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.

Thanks for coming. I've been FM Athlete. You've been ‘on the edge of your seat’. See you next time.