La Plata: Vice is the conclusion to a three part series that intertwines creative writing alongside Football Manager save updates. It probably feels like it never ends, but there is a definite story arc coming to its conclusion for FM22. Whilst a lot of the Bastardoverse story has been documented on the blog, some probably still sits in my head…so in order to bring readers up-to-speed, or to simply re-cap on past events, I intend to set the scene ahead of FM22’s La Plata: Vice. The post begins with a timeline of past events, before I move on to introducing key characters to include a short synopsis of their arc so far.

Bastardoverse Timeline

The concept of time is a fluid one in the La Plata series. Not only does time ‘reset’ with each edition, I also have to factor in the lengths of each saves and narrative wait time between saves to build a cumulative timeline across multiple editions of FM. I’ve spent way too long thinking about this, but the best way to accept it is to not think of this series in Earth Years…but rather years since Bastardo’s successful Estudiantes spell in Football Manager 2018 [known on this site as ‘Return to La Plata’]. For me, this is the starting point of Bastardo’ journey (as I also accept FM17’s antics were all a drug induced dream). Never mind that, I present the Bastardoverse timeline:

Major Characters

Ángel Bastardo

It’s been a near 30 year journey for Ángel Bastardo’s in my stories. From humble beginnings, to political scandals, drug trafficking and Copa Libertadores/Copa América triumphs. Bastardo inspired a generation in La Plata, but also on the whole of the South American continent. However, drama always followed Bastardo and much of it was self-inflicted. After winning back-to-back Copa Libertadores titles with his hometown city, his decision to rob La Plata’s Central Bank in order to self-finance an invasion of the fictional African country of Equatorial Katanga was probably the start of a lot of problems. Alienating the United Nations, notably the United States of America, he fell into a fragile alliance with Russia and their agent Ruslan Chepiga, before running away to the Colombian jungle to hide.

After a period in exile, Bastardo’s story picked up again when neutral Uruguay offered protection - providing he agreed to manage ex-Uruguayan President Tabaré Vázquez’s favourite team: Club Atlético Peñarol. A return to football management and winning trophies followed in Río de la Plata, including the Copa América triumph with the Uruguay National Team. But would we get a happy ending? Not if Ruslan Chepiga had anything to say about it…his organised shootout at the World Cup isolated Bastardo from his protection and ensured Bastardo would be given over to the US. Once extradited to a maximum security prison in Butner, North Carolina, Ángel Bastardo would serve a undefined sentence for narcotics and war crimes.

Hugo Ojeda

Sensing immediate betrayal prior to the World Cup shootout, Ángel Bastardo passed the reins of the business to refugee-turned-understudy Hugo Ojeda in what was dubbed ‘Operation Isabella’. The instruction was to relocate all operations to Sinaloa, Mexico which would see Bastardo’s empire overshadowed by the United States’ bigger Mexican headache: the ongoing drug war against the Cartels along border states.

Much like his predecessor, Venezuelan Hugo Ojeda aka The Snake of Sinaloa used football management as a public front…managing Sinaloan teams Murciélagos FC and Dorados - who he earned a successful promotion to Liga MX in La Plata: Mexico. Outside of football however, Hugo Ojeda longed to set Bastardo free from prison and seek revenge on Ruslan Chepiga (and anybody from Russia for that matter). His way to do this was to become the Cartel’s unified leader, which eventually led him to Barranquilla, Colombia; where he controlled cocaine production alongside his Mexican distribution. Once again, football was the public front to deter suspecting eyes…with a successful five year spell at Junior de Barranquilla, which included a Copa Libertadores title alongside multiple domestic accolades in La Plata: Colombia.

With the help of US legal firm Theydon Mortimer, Hugo Ojeda successfully negotiated Bastardo’s release, which is where the La Plata: Vice story picks up from.

Natasha Sibiski

Legal firm Theydon-Mortimer'‘s origins are shrouded in anonymity, with several benefactors choosing to not reveal themselves. One of the firm’s biggest accounts is Ojeda’s Barranquilla outfit, which has been tasked to Theydon-Mortimer’s top legal executive: Natasha Sibiski. Over the course of 5 years, Natasha Sibiski has taken on the dual role of negotiating the planned release of Ángel Bastardo and ensuring Hugo Ojeda is not extradited to the US on drug trafficking charges.

Her paternal ancestry remains a mystery. But her maternal links to mainland Russia, and the sudden reappearance of Ruslan Chepiga, have seen her relations with Hugo Ojeda become strained in recent months. Natasha has a growing importance to the story, after being introduced in La Plata: Colombia - is Hugo right to not trust her? Whose side is she truly on?

Others

Ruslan Chepiga

Ruslan Chepiga is FM Eadster’s character, I merely borrow him from time-to-time to flesh out the Bastardoverse’s wider catalogue of scoundrels. Ruslan Chepiga is a great character…known for being a ‘Superior Agent’ to the Russian Federation, his story mixes geo-political struggles alongside Football Manager. His involvement in the Bastardoverse sprung from Bastardo’s aforementioned African invasion. At a time of heightened political tensions…Ruslan was the man to carry out the silent murders and subterfuge that nobody else would be willing to do. Ruslan works in the shadows within the former Soviet Bloc - notably in Pripyat, Ukraine…where his mission to rebuild the former Soviet satellite city ended miserably. His betrayal on Bastardo is what sees the Argentine now in jail, and what has led Hugo Ojeda to seemingly undertake a near-15 year campaign to find him and take revenge.

Alas, Chepiga was missing for all this time and presumed dead in an airplane crash along the Bering Strait around a decade ago. However, it was a clever ruse and Ruslan would in fact be hiding in the United States under witness protection. Now seemingly let out of the cage once more, and offered a chance at football management in Major League Soccer; his path once again crosses with Ángel Bastardo.

Father Martínez

The Colombian jungle compound that Venezuelan refugee Hugo Ojeda grew up in had two heads: the pious Father Martínez and the flamboyant exiled Ángel Bastardo. It was Father Martínez who would strongly object to those that would follow Bastardo to Montevideo, which included young teenager Hugo Ojeda (and the majority of residents). Years of resentment as to what was said festered for both Ojeda and Martínez, which came to a head almost 15 years later when Hugo Ojeda re-visited the sparsely populated compound once again en route to Barranquilla.

Father Martínez was burned alive under Hugo’s orders, which served as the introduction to La Plata: Colombia and was a clear indicator that things were not right with Bastardo’s heir apparent.

Diego Mendoza

A devout ally to Bastardo, Argentine journeyman Diego Mendoza serves as the football idealist that crosses paths with Bastardo from time-to-time in the Bastardoverse. Mendoza provided Libya as a base for operations during the African war, and would also host Bastardo on several occasions for glamour ties around the World; such as in the United Arab Emirates. Although their rivalry to become Argentina’s most successful manager is evident, there is a mutual respect between the two managers that stands the test of time.

José Luis Brown & Carlos Valderrama

The now deceased José Luis ‘Tata’ Brown was the loyal No2. to Ángel Bastardo during the La Plata years. Some say ‘Tata’ was critical in any success Estudiantes had during this spell and question whether Bastardo can return to previous managerial heights without him.

Carlos Valderrama was No.2 to Hugo Ojeda, following the Venezuelan’s arrival to Junior de Barranquilla. Like Tata Brown’s support to Bastardo, Valderrama would be critical to footballing successes and is often credited at grounding his younger superior with sage counsel. Valderrama is reportedly willing to return to MLS, where he played in the 1990s, in order to work under Ángel Bastardo.

Edinson Cavani

Ángel Bastardo has been known for his fibra philosophy, which is epitomised in certain players he has managed throughout his managerial career like Santiago Ascacíbar, Diego Polenta and Gary Medel…but none more so than Edinson Cavani who was willing to take a bullet for Bastardo during the infamous Chepiga shootout. Cavani has widely acknowledged that he would like a Bastardo reunion before hanging up his boots. It’s too early to say if a deal with Inter Miami can be finalised.

La Plata: Vice

I will reveal more how I intend to convey the La Plata: Vice story as we move closer towards Football Manager 2022’s release date (09 November 2021). Because of these yet-to-be-disclosed plans, the series will not start right away - instead I will likely play a 1-2 season beta save first.

As always, thanks for reading/sharing/caring.

Tony / FM Grasshopper