July 2018

I am struggling to write my Season 2 review, mainly due to real world stuff getting in the way and also my love for actually playing the game.  So I'm doing away with a hurried attempt, in place of bastardising 'The Twelve Days Of Christmas' song instead...

..."The Five Days of Christmas" by Ángel Bastardo

Lyrics (please sing along):

On the First day of Christmas, A.Bastardo gave to me,
a Recopa Winners Trophy.

On the Second day of Christmas, A.Bastardo gave to me,
a two year extension, and a Recopa Winners Trophy.

 On the Third Day of Christmas, A.Bastardo gave to me,
a 3rd place finish, a two year extension, and a Recopa Winners Trophy.

On the Fourth Day of Christmas, A.Bastardo gave to me,
£1.4m for Cavallini, a 3rd place finish, a two year extension, and a Recopa Winners Trophy.

On the Fifth Day of Christmas, A.Bastardo gave to me,
a 5* Copa Libertadores Exit, £1.4m for Cavallini, a 3rd place finish, a two year extension, and a Recopa Winners Trophy.

"On the First day of Christmas, A.Bastardo gave to me,
a Recopa Winners Trophy" 

We followed up last year's Copa Sudamericana success by winning the 'Recopa'.  A match between the South American winners of the Copa Sudamericana & Copa Libertadores.  My opponents were Colombian outfit: Atletico Nacional.  We won 5-4 on aggregate, after a nervy 2nd leg in Medellín.

This means it's now two trophies in two years for Ángel Bastardo and his band of warriors.  We've also become Argentina's most reputable club in the rankings, which is in part down to our Continental success.  Move over Boca!

"On the Second day of Christmas, A.Bastardo gave to me,
a two year extension, and a Recopa Winners Trophy" 

The Ascacibar Saga continues (will it ever end?).  As documented in a previous post (click here), Santiago Ascacíbar was sold to Paris Saint-Germain for a value up to £55m with add-ons.  I've now worked the magic once more and brought him back to La Plata for another two years (until 2020).  This time I have to pay 40% of his wages, but this is well within my current threshold (£15k a week).  So I look forward to having such a valued member of the team back for Seasons 3 and 4!

"On the Third Day of Christmas, A.Bastardo gave to me,
a 3rd place finish, a two year extension, and a Recopa Winners Trophy"

We made improvement to last year's 4th place finish, by finishing 3rd behind River and Boca who had exceptional seasons:

This included a frantic last day of the season, where I jumped from 6th to 3rd thanks to a Lucas Viatri thunderous strike to win the match against Rosario Central on 88 mins!

Whilst all my immediate rivals in the battle for the Top 4 lost: Belgrano, Independiente and Rosario Central (obviously):

I celebrated like a man possessed when the results came in, but on further reflection I am worried about drawing so many games in Season 2.  Certainly I have a lot to think about going into Season 3, as we conceded more and scored less this time round.  Bastardo football is at the Crossroads...

"On the Fourth Day of Christmas, A.Bastardo gave to me,
£1.4m for Cavallini, a 3rd place finish, a two year extension, and a Recopa Winners Trophy"

It might not mean much to some, but I made over a £1m profit on a player who joined for £250k.  Despite me sitting on all of that Ascacibar cash, I still should look to generate a profit as Club Chairman Juan Sebastián Verón refuses to pay off the £21.76m bank loan in one go (payments lasting until 2040).  We give over around £1m to the Bank each year, so my aim is to generate a small profit each season on player sales.

I had real hopes for Lucas Cavallini when he joined in Season 1, but he never really found consistent form and fitness during his time in La Plata.  A lot has to do with his International commitments, which sees players leave Argentina during crucial periods.  It's shown me that I probably need to avoid resting my hopes on players within International squads.  Especially North American countries who have the Gold Cup which meant Lucas had no pre-season for Season 2.  He was always playing catch up against my other strikers for form and fitness.

On the Fifth Day of Christmas, A.Bastardo gave to me,
a 5* Copa Libertadores Exit, £1.4m for Cavallini, a 3rd place finish, a two year extension, and a Recopa Winners Trophy"

This exit hurt, as we had a dream run in the 2017 Copa Libertadores.  The Group Stage was near perfect:

Our defensive masterclass was followed up by beating Recopa opponents Atletico Nacional:

It was all looking great after the 1st leg draw against Grêmio, where I had 2 away goals to sit on.  In the Home 2nd leg, we started well with Gastón Gil Romero scoring a 21st minute thunderbolt for Estudiantes.  But I was immediately pegged back by Grêmio, as Ecuadorian Miller Bolaños scored a curling gem from outside the area.  But the heartbreak didn't stop there, as fellow Argentine Walter Kannemann did me over with this fluke goal in the 88th minute.  This GIF still makes me feel sick.

Season's Greetings

This is the last post before Christmas and most likely of 2016, so I just want to wish you all a good break with family and friends during the holiday period.  All the best,

FMG