Previously on La Plata: Colombia, Hugo Ojeda made the sacrifice and unified Mexico.

“We're flying high

We're watching the world pass us by

Never want to come down

Never want to put my feet back down on the ground”

(Depeche Mode - Never Let Me Down Again - 1987)

Intro

Winning a Copa Libertadores with a club outside of Argentina or Brazil is no easy task. There’s a huge gulf in money, facilities and the quality of player between the two bigger footballing nations and their post-colonial cousins. For example, I had tried to do this in the four seasons with Peñarol in FM20 and only got as far as a single Quarter Final appearance.

Yet by 2023, in FM21, my Barranquilla Boys had done it! Junior Club 2-0 São Paulo, and in our own stadium too: El Metro (an increasingly rare situation given CONMEBOL’s decision to have neutral venue single finals). It’s probably the best way to win the greatest South American club prize, and I couldn’t have scripted it any better even if I had tried.

Today’s post reflects on the successful trophy laden second half of 2023, and I’ll be discussing exactly what this means for the save going forward. Are there heights still to reach? Can I still find a challenge on the shores of the Caribbean Coast? I guess you have to read on to find out…

Season 2023

It’s been the most successful 6-month period in Junior Club’s 99-year history, and I’m going to introduce the 2023 competitions in the chronological order we won them. So, first up is the 2023 Copa Colombia which was won in early November. The win had ended a 5 year wait for Junior fans to toast domestic cup success, and it was all relatively straight forward with only Millonarios testing us…

The second trophy in the month of November was the BIG one: the 2023 Copa Libertadores. Prior to the showpiece final in front of our own fans, we had been on a really exciting run against the strongest clubs from Brazil (being the only side outside of Brazil from the Quarter Final onwards). The watershed moment, where I really started to believe we might just be able to do something special, came in that QF 1st leg Vs tournament favourites Flamengo. A man down after 13 minutes due to Fabián Ángel’s straight red, we rallied to a 2-1 victory with Caraballo & Laquintana scoring. My belief was reinforced with a solid 1-0 away win in the Maracanã 2nd leg.

There was a lot to be fearful of São Paulo going into the party final. Not only had they steamrolled through the knockout stages with ease, they had the Brazilian Goldenboy Brenner at their disposal. The 23-year-old had, at that point, scored 33 goals in the 2023 year and looked destined to get his hands on South America’s greatest continental trophy. Cue some insanity from the AI, who omitted him from the Match Day squad (presumably on the basis that he was slightly fatigued from playing 3 days earlier).

The decision once again opened the floodgates in my mind: we could do this! I’d honestly get no better chance, and with Ed Wilson and FM Samo at my virtual side on Twitch…we smashed it. A deserved 2-0 performance, and with no real drama…just a solid and professional piece of game management from the help of two of the best England-based FM Bloggers. Personally, the result is up there with the Estudiantes Copa Libertadores wins of FM18, and I’m still feeling the effects of this particular FM high! Here are the GIFGoals…

2023 Clausura

The Copa Colombia win had already guaranteed 2024 Copa Libertadores Group Stage participation, so there was less pressure on us to go ahead and win the 2023 Closing Stage. It also meant I could rotate and rest players ahead of the Copa Libertadores Final, seeing as this important game was sandwiched in the middle of the [already congested] Semi Final Group Stage period. The really promising thing is that some games had as many as seven academy players in them and they never really once looked out-of-place:

Despite there being less fmpressure on me, it’s still a title up for grabs, and having lost the previous two finals (2022 Closing and 2023 Opening)…I really wanted to win. I guess Millonarios really wanted it too, we had beaten them in two league finals in this save already (2021 Closing and 2022 Opening). There is definitely a bitter rivalry developing here, and we kept up tradition with a third consecutive final win Vs the capital club:

My favourite goal of the finals came from 49 goal Ricardo Caraballo. Why? Well, it just highlights the confidence he has when put through and with a man, or two, to beat. I’ve already raved about him in a previous blog post, and I asked you whether he’d surpass 50 goals. 54% of votes (55) were proved right, having chosen 32-50 goals. Well done if you were one of these visionaries, I’m really proud of you.

My FM21 Checklist + Next Steps

Remember this checklist from my FM21 save introduction? Don’t worry if not, it’s been a while. I like setting objectives or parameters for my FM saves, it grounds the realism a bit more and helps me keep at a save long-term. Back in November 2020 I set myself seven aims, and I am delighted to complete three of them already. I’ll update on each one below…

Trophies and Legacies (Aims 1-3)

Essentially these three aims were carryovers from FM20. As alluded in my introduction, FM20 Peñarol left me thirsty for continental glory…the Copa Libertadores is the trophy in South America and I am delighted to win Junior’s 1st ever continental honours. The Club World Cup is the next logical super trophy to acquire, and this is going to be tough. Not only because I have to wait two years (until Summer 2025) to enter into FIFA’s new format, but also because we could look like a completely different side by then.

Why? Because (3) is all about using Academy players and I accept that I am going to have to break up this team in one or two areas to allow a really talented crop of youngsters to flourish. I already mentioned it previously, but over the tail end of 2023 I was playing many 16-17 year olds…and I will surely look to carry this tradition into 2024 and beyond. As-it-stands, Willer Ditta (now with Club América) is the only FM21 Academy payer to get an international cap. But please, watch this space.

Tactics and Training (Aims 4 and 5)

These two aims are subjective, but this is my blog after all. I say how I feel, and do as I say. For me, I feel as if I delivered on key elements of ‘El Toque’: the Colombian system made famous by Francisco Maturana. During the first 18 months of this save, I played in a 4-2-3-1 system. It had two defensive midfielders and Sherman Cárdenas as the No.10. We had sexy football, notably the fine team goal scored Vs Deportes Tolima on 17 July 2021.

But whether it was the odd match engine patch taking away some of the fun from the outputs of that system, or the fact that maybe we were not as swashbuckling as I thought at the time. We became stale. It birthed FM Misery and I am now like a 1990s Carlo Ancelotti…completely wedded to a 4-4-2 and it’s going to take a Zizou to move me away from it to be honest. I like how we now play, it’s not El Toque…it’s not ‘between the lines’ as the previous 4-2-3-1 had us playing. Instead, we’re more lateral in passing/movement. The Advanced Forward and Pressing Forward are relentless (I mean, my front two have scored 86 goals between them this season) and I have wide players bombing forward really well. It’s simple and effective.

But that does not mean it’s at the expense of technique. In fact, we’re really starting to see some of the fruits of our labour with regards to the technical training programme I have implemented across both the U20 and First Team squads. I wrote about my Team Training here. Trust me, the routines are good and I’m really surprised at how some of my youngsters are flying into the First Team squad and displaying some lovely Colombian magic. I’ve always had dreams of a Homegrown XI, and this might just be the save that does it.

Long Term Ambitions (Aims 6 and 7)

So, it’s pretty clear from reading the above that I am still invested in this save for the long-haul. Aims (6) and (7) are probably a little way off. Yes, I’ve won a Copa Libertadores…but my Colombian brothers haven’t made waves just yet on the continental scene. In 2023, as mentioned previously, the Libertadores was dominated by Brazil and the lesser Sudamericana also had a Brazilian Final. El Dorado may take a bit longer to deliver.

(7) is all about the domestic league titles. Sadly, Atlético Nacional (the team I am trying to chase) has won two league titles so far in the save. Their total is now 18. Our three league titles means we gain on them slightly but we are still six behind them:

• Atlético Nacional - 18 domestic titles

• Atlético Junior - 12 domestic titles

It’s a really good stretch goal to have, even though I remain dubious I can play long enough to catch them (I see my wife and children).

Even if all of the above had somehow been achieved by 2023, I think I would have carried on for at least for one more season to see if either Caraballogol or Durán-Durán could break that 50 calendar goal target. 2024, we are ready for you.

As always, thanks for reading/sharing/caring.

FM Grasshopper