2015 The Second Coming of A Spanish Legend: A 1K Challenge

[MerlionMaple96]

Great update - shame no opportunities came up abroad and definitely a very brave move to City. 1000 goals can still happen though! #believe

Oztunali has been a beast for me this year, hopefully he can come through for you too

The boldness of the move could of course also be called stupid XD And I will #believe mate 

He was really. really good. Pity I only got to use him for half a season before I moved

Keep the faith. 

My first 1k this year was done at Liverpool and my player (although a regen) played until he was 37. The goals kept flying in and didn't really slow down until he hit 35 years of age. 

I don't think I read that one Out of curiosity, how many goals did he have around this age? Was he closer to the 1k?

No! Not City! Move again! Are you counting internationals, because you may need it.

Hahaha, DB is apparently the only one with common sense. XD

Yes I am, although his tally on that front is less than impressive. He keeps getting left out over other strikers :/

[billy2shots]

Just checked and he scored approximately 350 goals in his 30's. Had the odd big season but at that age he was hitting a goal a game. 

At 36/37 he slowed right down to less than a goal every 2 games. 

Try and get ahead of the game before he hits 34. Don't forget to get him to sign a 5 year contract when he hits 32/33 years old. 

I also had to give him more support upfront as he couldn't cut it on his own after 35. 

I wasn't actually attempting a 1k and only became interested when I realised he was on 800. 

Edited October 18, 2015 by billy2shots

[Ashez]

Very brave or maybe foolish, I certainly wouldn't of had the balls for that move (then again I did take Babacar to Italy lol). Hopefully it works out but seems somewhat pointless to me with the fact you now have to rebuild a side suitable for the 1kc without the benefit of an easier league. 

[MerlionMaple96]

Just checked and he scored approximately 350 goals in his 30's. Had the odd big season but at that age he was hitting a goal a game. 

At 36/37 he slowed right down to less than a goal every 2 games. 

Try and get ahead of the game before he hits 34. Don't forget to get him to sign a 5 year contract when he hits 32/33 years old. 

I also had to give him more support upfront as he couldn't cut it on his own after 35. 

I wasn't actually attempting a 1k and only became interested when I realised he was on 800. 

Interesting...350 should be just about enough for De Tomas once you add his INT goals. If he can hit 80+ in one or two more seasons we might just make it. I have no hope if he wants to retire at 34 or 35 though :/

Very brave or maybe foolish, I certainly wouldn't of had the balls for that move (then again I did take Babacar to Italy lol). Hopefully it works out but seems somewhat pointless to me with the fact you now have to rebuild a side suitable for the 1kc without the benefit of an easier league. 

Well the one thing I will say in my defence is that I've noticed that the best seasons at a club often come in the first 3 or 4 years. After that things kinda stagnate. I was hoping or a bit of a boost by moving and unfortunately City was all I got

[MerlionMaple96]

 

3^rd place in the league last season was certainly an accomplishment. Considering the club were in 7^th when I arrived in January, most would agree with me on that assessment. However, I was aiming to take us a step further this season and hopefully win the competition outright. To do that I knew that I needed the right blend of players in my squad; players who had both the quality and the consistency required at the highest level.

In goal I had the excellent Matej Delac, a player who despite his phenomenal talent was only just getting his shot on the grand stage. Playing in front of Delac were experienced Italian International Alessio Romagnoli and new signing Mike Cadwallader, a bright young centre back out of the Villa academy. At right back we had the ever reliable Dani Carvajal while on the other side I picked Dean Taylor, one of the club's very own youngsters. In midfield we had an amazingly talented and well balanced trio in the veteran Marcos Llorente supported by French international Cyril Chevalier and Chelsea youth product Gary Dyer. On the left wing we had a player who could legitimately be considered as the world's best in Stefano Bovo, while Viktor Fischer occupied the opposite flank. And of course, up front we had the man, the legend, Raul De Tomas. Throw into the mix the likes of Steven Caulker, Koke and Gabriel Barbosa and we had a team well worthy of fighting for honours aplenty this season.

However, things did not start very well for us in our first major tournament, the Capital One Cup. Despite beating the likes of Watford and Swindon in early rounds, we eventually fell to United in a 2-0 defeat at Old Trafford. Looking to make up for it in the FA Cup, we came out guns blazing as we took down Arsenal and Liverpool en route to a final against Everton. The final was an exciting affair as De Tomas' early goal was cancelled out within seconds by Luka Petrovic. However, we came good in the end and went on the secure victory with another De Tomas strike!

The Premier League was not as long and gruelling as it was last year as we ended up absolutely crushing everything that stood in our way. Securing over 100 points for only the second time in my career, we left United in the dust by 14 points, easily securing my first league title at the club.

The Champion's League was successful for us as well as things were plain sailing until we were paired up against Barcelona in the quarter finals. However, a 4-0 home win in that tie meant that the away draw that followed became irrelevant. We then met Real in the semi finals where a similar 2-0 home win made a one goal loss at the Bernebeau the next week superfluous. This all led up to a final against German opposition in Dortmund. In the end we were just too strong for the Germans as we ran out 2 goal winners with De Tomas scoring the winner!

Fascinatingly the terrific performance over the course of the season really was a team effort as everyone more or less shared the weight equally. No one really stood out and it was hard to award a Player of the Season. However, in the end it went to Dani Carvajal who in addition to some sterling defensive performances, also scored 3 times and provided 9 assists from right back!

This tiny medal was all we gave him. Can't let it get to his head now can we?

De Tomas for his part had a most exciting season in truth. Playing like his young self the Spaniard scored 80 goals for the first time in the last four seasons. He was a constant threat to defences across Europe using his experience to his advantage in many important games. 

So after an explosive season, De Tomas now sits at 708 goals from 567 games. Despite his advanced age of 31, the striker really has defied my expectations in cracking the 80 goal barrier when I least expected it. At this point, the challenge really can swing either way still and only time will be able to decide which way that is to be...

What do you think Vibe? How about that season from an old man? Is 1000 back on the cards? Was moving to City still such a mistake? I want to hear what you guys have to say. So...

leave a comment and let me know 

Bonus:
Players who have scored > 100 goals:

De Tomas: 567 games, 708 goals

Oscar: 420 games, 122 goals

Hazard: 464 games, 112 goals

Players who have made > 100 assists:

Oscar: 420 games, 211 assists

Hazard: 464 games, 165 assists

Koke: 420 games, 120 Assists

Strootman: 411 games, 102 Assists

 

 

[FastFurious]

Another cracking season @MerlionMaple96 ! I say 1k goals is definitely back on the cards as long as he plays until 35-36

[billy2shots]

Stonking season for RDT. This really is going to go down to the wire. 

[Ashez]

Smashed it out the park! All round quality mate! 

[MerlionMaple96]

Another cracking season @MerlionMaple96 ! I say 1k goals is definitely back on the cards as long as he plays until 35-36

Yup! Like you said, I just have to keep my fingers crossed that he won't retire too early...

Stonking season for RDT. This really is going to go down to the wire. 

Haha, that's often the case with all my careers tbh XD

Smashed it out the park! All round quality mate! 

Cheers Ash. The old man has still got it!

[MerlionMaple96]

After having conquered both Europe and England last season, I approached this term with a lot of confidence in my squad. I knew that my players could and would perform on the big stage and all that was needed was to add a little competition in certain areas. So I set about doing that the best I could. First I brought in Argentine full back Luis Barral from Real Madrid for a whopping 55 Million Euros. The papers had a field day with this one, complaining that I had spent too much on a full back. However, the transfer made perfect sense to me. I needed a long term replacement for the aging Carvajal and money was certainly no object. 

I then proceeded to purchase centre back Adam Taylor, a player I had seen develop during my many years at Chelsea, and whom I knew to be quite the prospect. Following the signing of Taylor, I went on to secure the services of Jim O'Halloran, a Scottish central midfielder, and Nahuel Seone, an Argentine winger.

The domestic season begun with the Community Shield against Manchester United. The game turned out to be a great success for us as we brushed past the Red Devils with ease. With goals from Gary Dyer, Stefano Bovo  and Raul De Tomas we had the game wrapped up even before half time.

The European Super Cup then followed suit although the final against Europa League winners Bayer Leverkusen was far more challenging. Enes Unal put the German side ahead with a cracking header in the first half before we equalised through an excellently taken chance from Raul De Tomas. For large swathes afterwards it seemed like anyone could take the game, but eventually we found the breakthrough through Vicente Navas and De Tomas wrapped it up with minutes to spare. 

Mickey mouse cups aside though, we felt defeat in our first real Cup of the season. Despite beating absolutely no one of note on the way to the semi-final I still did not expect to be beaten by Chelsea at that stage! At least the FA Cup lived up to my expectations though as our path through Chelsea and United to set up a final against Liverpool really prepared us for the game. A game in which we got out to an early lead through none other than Raul De Tomas which was of course promptly cancelled out by Liverpool before half time. However, an early second half strike from new boy Nahuel Seone was enough to earn us the FA Cup.

Europe on the other hand was a disappointment. Having beaten Barca and Milan to qualify for the semi-final, we met the familiar challenge of Manchester United. Unfortunately we left ourselves a mountain to climb after succumbing 1-0 at Old Trafford in the first leg. Despite battling bravely and just pipping the away leg, we ended up crashing out anyways due to the away goals rule. The premier league also proved to be a greater challenge than perhaps it should have been. We only picked up a measly 89 points but we were very lucky in that it was still enough to beat Chelsea into first by a full 6 points. 

Our best player this season was a man who really had taken the World by storm this year. In all my years of management and through all the wonderful talent I had worked with at Chelsea and at City, this man was by far the most talented player I had coached. Stefano Bovo had a cracking season in which he scored 14 times and provided 39 assists in just 45 games. Pure genius.

Much like our mixed bag of a season, De Tomas's performance also failed to live up to the hype he generated last season. Despite staying healthy all year round, the poor lad could only muster 59 goals in 61 appearances, leaving him at a total of 767 goals from 628 appearances. A really shabby number indeed, one which shied vastly to his 80 goals the season before. Perhaps age was finally catching up to him...

What do you think Vibe? Has old man time finally come to reap De Tomas' soul? Was this season just a one off? Will De Tomas ever eclipse 80 goals ever again? I want to hear what you guys have to say. So...

leave a comment and let me know 

Bonus:
Players who have scored > 100 goals:

De Tomas: 628 games, 767 goals

Oscar: 420 games, 122 goals

Hazard: 464 games, 112 goals

Players who have made > 100 assists:

Oscar: 420 games, 211 assists

Hazard: 464 games, 165 assists

Koke: 437 games, 124 Assists

Strootman: 411 games, 102 Assists

[billy2shots]

I personally see good seasons followed by mediocre seasons regularly and for no apparent reason. I can look back at my 3 different 1k's and see things like 100,80,63,85. 

Having followed other people's goal challenges it appears exactly the same. For that reason I would fully expect RDT to have a much better season next year. 

However let's assume at the age of 32/33 he hits two 75 goals a season in a row, that will give him 150 goals. He would be 34 and still need 83 goals, that's over 40 goals season from a 35/36 year old. That's a lot to ask in the Premiership and for that reason I strongly advise a change of leagues. 

 

Edited to add. 1000 Premiership goals is a fantastic achievement though ?

Edited October 24, 2015 by billy2shots

[Ashez]

Slightly disappointing but keep the faith, with ITN goals you basically need 200 to seal the 1k. 

Hopefully you have 4-6 seasons remaining so 40-50 goals a season will be enough in theory. If Billy's theory is correct and you smash out 80ish next season you'll be laughing!

Bring it home MM! 

[MerlionMaple96]

I personally see good seasons followed by mediocre seasons regularly and for no apparent reason. I can look back at my 3 different 1k's and see things like 100,80,63,85. 

Having followed other people's goal challenges it appears exactly the same. For that reason I would fully expect RDT to have a much better season next year. 

However let's assume at the age of 32/33 he hits two 75 goals a season in a row, that will give him 150 goals. He would be 34 and still need 83 goals, that's over 40 goals season from a 35/36 year old. That's a lot to ask in the Premiership and for that reason I strongly advise a change of leagues. 

 

Edited to add. 1000 Premiership goals is a fantastic achievement though ?

Very true. The game has been a lot more up and down and all around this year. The issue I have is that if he can only muster up 60 going forward he is going to have a real tough time of it. But we shall see. The question of his retirement still looms as well of course. Who knows when he will call it quits!

Slightly disappointing but keep the faith, with ITN goals you basically need 200 to seal the 1k. 

Hopefully you have 4-6 seasons remaining so 40-50 goals a season will be enough in theory. If Billy's theory is correct and you smash out 80ish next season you'll be laughing!

Bring it home MM! 

That's true. Though he's been pathetic for Spain. Just 30 goals! If only I had the Spain job :/

 

[pipaz4]

4 more seasons and this will be done, KIU MM!

[billy2shots]

 The question of his retirement still looms as well of course. Who knows when he will call it quits!

 

 

In my experience, as long as the player is still playing and has a contract then he will not retire. Give him a 5 year contract when he is 33 and you will be set. Barring long term injury of course. 

[MerlionMaple96]

After an overall iffy season last time around, we were looking to improve in all areas this season. With that in my I approached the transfer window with the idea of bringing in players who could make an instant impact. So in came the likes of Gianluigi Conti, an Italian central midfielder, Antonio Scardina, a world class keeper from Liverpool and the experienced veteran Leon Goretzka.

In our first test of the season we faced Chelsea in the Community Shield. The game turned out to be one of the most enthralling games I had ever been privy to witness in my life. It all began well for us as Raul De Tomas headed in a Stefano Bovo cross to put us ahead on 3 minutes. Chelsea's Columbian striker, Manuel Crespo, then proceeded to equalize less than 15 minutes later before Stefano Bovo himself put us back ahead with a superb finish just before the break. After the break Chelsea equalized again through Josh Barker before new signing Gianluigi Conti put us ahead once more with a wonder volley on 70 minutes. However, it was not to be for us as two goals within two minutes near the 80 minute mark left Chelsea to claim the trophy.

We extracted our revenge on Chelsea on our way to the Capital One Cup final when we beat them 5-0 on aggregate in the semi-finals. Having overcome the Londoners easily we had no problems disposing of the far less superior men in red as we stormed to a 3-0 victory. Liverpool then got back at us in the FA Cup when we crashed out to the club from Anfield in a 5th round replay.

The Premier League actually turned out to be another close fought contest as we only just about edged out Liverpool for the trophy by a mere 5 points. However, unlike life in local football, life in Europe just went swimmingly for us. In the first round we beat Juventus 4-3 over two legs, then followed that up by pipping Roma 5-4 on aggregate before defeating Chelsea 4-2 in the semi-finals. Having had such close fought matches in the run up to our final against Real Madrid, I expected that game to be a real tough contest. It turned out to be far from the truth though as Raul De Tomas took the game by the scruff of its neck and showed it who was boss. 4 glorious goals from the Spaniard meant that we smashed Real in a famous, famous, final.

Our Player of the season though was not De Tomas. Despite his performance in the Champions League final, his season was not quite as eye catching as that of Cyril Chevalier. The Frenchman put in some marauding displays in the middle of the park where his link up play with the front three was especially magnificent. All in all he was responsible for a grand total of 6 goals and 14 assists. What an effort.

Success on most fronts this season was matched by De Tomas who improved on his performance last season. Despite struggling through a few injury spells over the season he did manage to play 48 games over which he netted 62 times. A pretty good return if you ask me! He now stands at 829 goals from 676 games. Unfortunately his stats are beginning to decline. Slowly but surely the once fearsome Spaniard is running out of legs.

What do you think Vibe? Was 62 goals good enough? Are his stats declining too much? Are his injury problems a concern now with his advanced age? I want to hear what you guys have to say. So...

leave a comment and let me know 

Bonus:
Players who have scored > 100 goals:

De Tomas: 676 games, 829 goals

Oscar: 420 games, 122 goals

Hazard: 464 games, 112 goals

Players who have made > 100 assists:

Oscar: 420 games, 211 assists

Hazard: 464 games, 165 assists

Koke: 437 games, 124 Assists

Bovo: 146 games, 109 Assists

Strootman: 411 games, 102 Assists

(Stefano Bovo leaping into that list ^^^ already! Mental...) 

 

[billy2shots]

62 goals from 48 games has to go down as a very good season. 1.29 goals per game. 60 games would have seen 77 goals scored so as predicted a great season. 

I still fear it's not enough though and you will be expecting too much from a 35/36 year RDT. 

[Ashez]

This is intense! I really hope missing the first season doesn't come back and haunt you! 

[FastFurious]

Wow getting so close now!! every goal counts...