Career Ashez Joins The Strikerless Bandwagon!

[Ashez]

Ashez Joins The Strikerless Bandwagon!

Welcome ladies and gentlemen to yet another career post by yours truly! I have no idea where this FMM rush has come from but I'm going to ride it until it crashes! Come on if I'm jumping on a bandwagon you guys now I've caught the FMM bug baaaad! The bandwagon in question is obviously Fantastic Mr Fox's strikerless challenge. 

You see I was browsing Vibe yesterday and I was craving some FMM but due to how I'm posting my LFC save I can't really rush ahead with it so I decided to try this instead. I started a save which I thought would be the one but I decided to check the rules one last time and boy was that a good decision! Why you ask? Because that's when it hit me obviously! 

Looking at the current attempts it's either people going ultra big with the massive names or people trying to abuse a weaker league like Portugal. Both are solid ways to approach this challenge and my original approach was the same as I intended to play in Scotland. It then hit me that these attempts are focusing on the players needs too much and not on the needs or point of the challenge. You may think this challenge exists to score goals when in fact the point is to rack up points! Just look at this.

1 point for every goal your three players score.
1 point for every assist your three players get.
League goal difference. Either +/-.
League points.

So your striker gets one point a goal right? That's the same as the club get from a draw. Hell if it's a score draw and your one player gets the goal and the other the assist that one match is now worth 3 points, if it's a 1-0 it's now worth 6 (3 points for win, goal + assist bonus + GD)! Don't get me wrong this is all simple stuff but the league imo is where the points are. The fact it also only focuses on the league means any other cups are only worthwhile if your players scores or assists which can be harder in European games. 

Where am I going with this? Well my friends let me reveal my club of choice.

That's right boys and girls i'm heading to the Championship!! The English Championship is one of the toughest leagues in world football which means it can be hard to work around on FMM, however I'm hoping the risk is worth the reward as the league will provide me with extra league games to play with. Those extra games are all worth points as I shown above and any goals or assists we get along the way will also be added to my score! The challenge will be taking advantage of these extra games and hoping I can still score and perform as needed in such a difficult and competitive league. 

The current top score is 358 which will be tough to catch but I'm hoping my smart thinking could give me the advantage. It's risky and there is no getting away from that but the second the concept crossed my mind I knew I had to try it! I'll either go top or fall flat on my face but it's a risk I have to take!  

The Chosen Three

Scott Sinclair

The second I decided to try this challenge Sinclair was the first player that came to mind which is why I ended up in Scotland. I've never used him before and I was surprised I could get him to Villa but I'm hoping he can deliver the goods. 

Sidney Sam

I spent a lot of time trying to find the second winger to use but the second I saw Sam was a possibility I snapped him up. He has the stats and the best name in football so why wouldn't I use him? 

Rodriguinho

The Brazilian wildcard! I know absolutely nothing about him but he looked a solid option so I placed my trust in his hands. Will this faith be rewarded I wonder? A pointless fact is this is the first time I've ever appealed a work permit failure and for the decision to be changed! He's got to be the real deal now right?

Transfers

Spoiler

 

Out

In

I went all in on the attack so I hope the rest of the squad is up to the challenge. I know I wish I signed a good DMC but i had to make do with just signing a new CB and keeper. 

 

The Plan

That brings my opening post to an end and tomorrow I'll post up until January with the final standing at some point after that. I'm currently only on January the 1st so I have a lot left to play for and I hope you enjoy the journey. I could have posted it in one go but I'm not really a fan of that so this being a three parter makes sense to me, this way it allows you guys to sink your teeth into it compared to a one and done.

As always thank you for viewing and please remember to leave a comment. 

[Nucleus]

All the best on this one Ash, nice choice of club and players. I like your thinking 

[mcandrew003]

Excellent thinking and great to see you back posting regularly. You better not fail now after that massive explanation on how to get points 

[samhardy]

Good luck @Ashez just wish you hasn't chose an absolute joke of a football club

[Woody]

Yeah good luck dude.

Surprised you arnt using Grealish in this.

 

[PriZe]

Sinclair is a great choice! Not to sure about your wildcard but good luck and great to see you posting again

[FuddledFox]

@Ashez is doing a challenge I created!!!

Honestly I know nothing has motivated you for a long time on FMM so the fact that this challenge has motivated you enough to try it and post it is really really cool

Like the club choice and the players as well. Good luck mate 

 

 

[Rob]

Good luck. It’s interesting what angle everyone takes on this.

[Ashez]

2 hours ago, NucleusNT said:

All the best on this one Ash, nice choice of club and players. I like your thinking 

Let's hope it pays off!

2 hours ago, mcandrew003 said:

Excellent thinking and great to see you back posting regularly. You better not fail now after that massive explanation on how to get points 

Hey if I fail it just means someone else can run with the idea :p. I'm playing and posting for fun and failing is always going to be apart of that haha. 

2 hours ago, samhardy said:

Good luck @Ashez just wish you hasn't chose an absolute joke of a football club

They had the money I wanted

2 hours ago, Acidsparxx said:

Yeah good luck dude.

Surprised you arnt using Grealish in this.

 

I debated using him but he's a player I'm not fond of and I think I used the money well. 

2 hours ago, PriZe said:

Sinclair is a great choice! Not to sure about your wildcard but good luck and great to see you posting again

Where's the fun if there is no risk

2 hours ago, FuddledFox said:

@Ashez is doing a challenge I created!!!

Honestly I know nothing has motivated you for a long time on FMM so the fact that this challenge has motivated you enough to try it and post it is really really cool

Like the club choice and the players as well. Good luck mate 

 

 

Thank you for posting it and for being around to inspire me

36 minutes ago, Rob2017 said:

Good luck. It’s interesting what angle everyone takes on this.

Indeed, I love challenges with multiple approaches

Cheers guys

[Woody]

Just now, Ashez said:

2 hours ago, Acidsparxx said:

 

I debated using him but he's a player I'm not fond of and I think I used the money well. 

Your better than me dude.....you know best ?

[Titjes]

Good luck mate  I'm sure you will set a great score  

[danovic78]

Good luck!

I actually bought Rodriguinho in my Porto save.....lets just say we didnt set the world alight but in the Championship it might be different.

[forbes5]

Good luck, original player choices, intrigued to see how you get on 

[Cockers2505]

Good Luck @Ashez nice choice, I wonder if this could be done with complete unknowns? and a team you would never choose, some back street club in the lower leagues, mmmmm

look forward to your score

[Ashez]

2 hours ago, Titjes said:

Good luck mate  I'm sure you will set a great score  

Time will tell

2 hours ago, danovic78 said:

Good luck!

I actually bought Rodriguinho in my Porto save.....lets just say we didnt set the world alight but in the Championship it might be different.

Gulp

1 hour ago, forbes5 said:

Good luck, original player choices, intrigued to see how you get on 

It should be interesting

51 minutes ago, Cockers2505 said:

Good Luck @Ashez nice choice, I wonder if this could be done with complete unknowns? and a team you would never choose, some back street club in the lower leagues, mmmmm

look forward to your score

The lower you go the easier it will be imo, lower league saves can be easy and goal heavy, the issue is improving as you climb which this doesn't need. 

[Paul186]

Good luck with the challenge, bring Villa back to the EPL, I can even remember them winning the European Cup.

[BatiGoal]

I'll follow any career that involves Aston Villa

[Ashez]

18 hours ago, Paul186 said:

Good luck with the challenge, bring Villa back to the EPL, I can even remember them winning the European Cup.

Thanks!

30 minutes ago, BatiGoal said:

I'll follow any career that involves Aston Villa

Brave words!

Update will be up tonight

[Ashez]

Ashez Joins The Strikerless Bandwagon!
Part One 
Pre-season To January

In the opening post I described my plan for this challenge and in the following update I'll reveal how the first half of the season unfolded. It's been a long time since I've experienced the difficulty of the Championship but whatever happens I really enjoyed this save, even if it was incredibly frustrating at times! 

Injuries

Spoiler

 

Right off the bat Sinclair is injured! What a depressing start as the player I saw as my main man goes down with injury!

Sam also suffers some bad luck but thankfully it's only a short layoff. 

So only the two so it could have been worse but that month without Scott really sucked!

 

FMM Is So Realistic

Spoiler

 

A timely yet unrealistic message which always brings a smile to my face!

 

Robbed In The Cup!

Spoiler

 

What can you say to an image like this? The salt was real as I watched this match unfold in front of me! I know it's the risk of the challenge relying on ISF forwards and long shots but damn this is BS!

 

The I Was There Match

Spoiler

 

From heart break to ecstasy as Snodgrass sinks a winner in extra time to go down in history! 

 

Results

Spoiler

The League Table

All in all a solid table but the amount of draws we're picking up is killing us! The leaky defence is an issue but that's somewhat my own fault for putting too much money into my attack and trusting the defence to do their thing. At first I had issues being beaten by long balls so I dropped the team back to combat this but I soon ran into issues conceding late goals, you see my squad is fairly old and they can be worn out before the final whistle. The front five were pretty solid but the back six were an absolute joke at times, especially from set pieces. We're however averaging around two goals a game which is a decent amount of points, it's just a shame we're conceding so many that my goal difference isn't anywhere near as good as I hoped. The main disappointment is I've basically already thrown away my "bonus" games with the amount of draws so I'll need a stellar second have of the season, unfortunately I'm just not sure how to impact a match going wrong with no strikers!

The Main Event
The Makeshift Strikers

Scott Sinclair
Stats

Pretty tasty!

Results

Considering the injury I have no complaints about Sinclair's contribution but a few more assists would be nice. 

Sidney Sam
Stats

Solid stats for the role 

Results

One in two with a decent haul of assist? All of going nicely!

Rodriguinho
Stats

As wildcards go i could have done a lot worse!

Results

Take a bow Mr Wildcard! The Brazilian flair is here as he has an almost challenge saving start to the save! He was a massive shock as I had all my eggs in the Sinclair basket! 

A January Addition

Spoiler

 

In comes a new DMC who will hopefully help solve my conceding issue, it turns out I was wrong to put faith in Jedinak as his stats nose dived once the save begun, you live and learn I suppose. I also signed some kid on loan who hardly played. 

 

Current Score
League Points - 54
Goal Difference - 27
Sinclair - 16
Sam - 21
Rodriguinho - 35
Total - 153

Not a bad half season score as we aim to at least break 300 for the season. While Sinclair and Sam impressed previously on this viewing it's clear to see they're lacking somewhat. The dream of beating 358 looks to be dead however as those draws and the one defeat have been extremely costly. While its only 21 league points dropped its the GD and striker points we missed in those results that's a kick in the teeth, like I said in my OP a standard win could be worth 6+ points with ease and while it's not as simple as to say we've dropped 60 odd points the reality is we could have, even turning half of those into wins would have been a massive boost. All I know is we're needing a strong end to the season to save face, while I've shown the concept is solid i'd still like to pick up a respectable score. 

As always thank you for following and please remember to leave a comment. 

[Cockers2505]

Nice start @Ashez let's see if you can finish the season injury free and get those player points as well as GD, good luck

[Paul186]

a good first half, keep going you might make up the difference, miracles do happen, remember Leicester.

[Ashez]

Loving the fact you guys are keeping the faith

[BatiGoal]

Very enjoyable update. The Villa are smashing it under your guidance

[Titjes]

That's a good score for half a season mate  keep it going  

[mcandrew003]

Doing well mate, your wildcard proved us all wrong massively!

[PriZe]

Not bad mate! KIU!!!  

[Woody]

Great start do far dude...

Im sure you will find that little defensive tweek through the 2nd half of your season.

Well done!

[FuddledFox]

Nice start. Its frustrating this strikerless lark isnt it.

[Ashez]

9 hours ago, BatiGoal said:

Very enjoyable update. The Villa are smashing it under your guidance

We'll be promoted in no time!

6 hours ago, Titjes said:

That's a good score for half a season mate  keep it going  

It's decent enough and keeps us on track for 300 odd

3 hours ago, mcandrew003 said:

Doing well mate, your wildcard proved us all wrong massively!

He surprised me too! Easily our main man!

2 hours ago, PriZe said:

Not bad mate! KIU!!!  

Cheers

1 hour ago, Acidsparxx said:

Great start do far dude...

Im sure you will find that little defensive tweek through the 2nd half of your season.

Well done!

Let's hope so! We need those goals flowing in only one direction!

1 hour ago, FuddledFox said:

Nice start. Its frustrating this strikerless lark isnt it.

Indeed! It'll obviously always lead to frustration but I just don't know how to impact games in this system lol. If I tried again I'd go triple AMCs. 

[Kingsolop]

Really nice writeup and great halftime score.