Genius in Geneva

[Nick]

I've been meaning to start this save for about three years now, but it always seemed to be put on hold for whatever reason. Servette play in the Swiss second division, the Challenge League. They've had a bit of a topsy-turvy time of it in recent years. Financial troubles, demotion to the third tier, promotion back to the Super League and subsequent relegation. The first job is to bring a bit of stability back. Early signs suggest that's going to be a bit harder than first thought. Financially, the club is a mess. Not in terms of loan repayments, we're clear as far as they are concerned, more to do with low gates not being able to balance with the wage bill (which is the second highest in the league).

One of the things that drew me towards the club were the youth facilities being rated as excellent, along with excellent junior coaching and extensive youth recruitment. I don't intend this save to be fully youth only, but there will definitely be a focus on bring through our own youngsters. League rules say that you need to name 11 home grown players in your match day squad, so my hands are half tied in this regard, but it'd be stupid to not take advantage of what we have.

The squad was fairly thin in terms of depth and I've had to use players that I usually wouldn't look twice at. Left back was a massive issue in that there wasn't one in the first team squad upon my arrival. I've promoted Robin Busset and Mathis Magnin from the youth teams to cover us. Busset actually looks like he'll be a quite decent player, and I'm looking forward to seeing how he can develop. Magnin on the other hand has just been used as a stop-gap measure until I can bring someone else in, as I don't think he'll ever be good enough. Physically, he's woeful and I've already had him targeted by the opposition. Anthony Sauthier is our best player, but he's being watched by Birmingham on an almost weekly basis. I'm hopeful I can keep him for this winter window and then use promotion as a tool to keep him here.

Speaking of promotion, the board want us to finish in a playoff position, which means top two in Switzerland.

Table

We started pretty slowly, losing twice in our first six games, but have settled down and, but for a 2-1 loss at lowly Chiasso just before the winter break, we'd have been top. Match cohesion has been our down fall for a long time. When I first took over, this was fully red and has only just gone 'positive' again. We've not really played badly at all this season and I get the feeling from watching us that we'll get even better when we get more used to playing together. The final pass can be a little off and we make mistakes in our defensive third that leads to goals. We've also given away four penalties so far this season.

The top four are definitely noticeably better than the rest of the league, but there isn't much between us and the likes of Winterthur and Lausanne, who are odds on favourites to win the league this year.

[jawzy]

Goood luck, Nick. How many league you got running on this one?

This side jas also interested me, but never got round to managing them either. So i will be reading

[Nick]

Dec 16, 2018 10:25:52 GMT jawzy said:

Goood luck, Nick. How many league you got running on this one?

This side jas also interested me, but never got round to managing them either. So i will be reading

Cheers Jawzy. I've got 16 nations running this time and I'll be keeping a close eye on the database size to check any abnormalities.

[Nick]

Squad Management

Always an important part of every save, but even more so when you have to abide by the league's home-grown rules. The idea of this post was not to revolutionise how anyone plays FM, but more to act as a reference for me when I complete my current season.

As mentioned above, we have to register at least 12 home-grown players each season. That does go down to 8 in the Super League, but given the way I want to take the save, and the fact we're not there yet, I'll be building my squad around that magical number of a dozen. We can also register a maximum of 10 non-EU players, but only 21 in total, with U21 players not counting towards that number. Young, domestic players are a necessity in Switzerland.



Current squad members: 25
Players with Swiss as first or second nationality: 17
Players considered home-grown: 14
U21 players: 5
Non-EU players: 2

On first glance, the numbers look good. We have 7 home-grown players in what would be my first choice XI, meaning I am 'forced' to name five more on my seven-man bench. Going forwards, and keeping a 25-man squad, I'd like that split 15-10, including five U21 players at all times.

The summer could be a busy one, whether we gain promotion or not. Home-grown players like Dilan Shala are not good enough for this level, let alone a step up. Add in players like Mathis Magnin and Mychell Chagas and there are obvious holes that need filling straight away. Those three will definitely be leaving in the summer, plus the three loan players, two of which are home-grown. Alex Alphonse is also 36 and will not be offered a new deal when his current one expires.

Potential squad members: 18
Potential players with Swiss as first or second nationality: 13
Potential players considered home-grown: 10
U21 players: 2
Non-EU players: 3

It's not going to be a quick fix to get the squad where I want it, but this summer the need for domestic players is obvious. With that in mind, I've hauled all three of my scouts back from neighbouring countries Germany and Italy and they're now scouring the Swiss competitions for players.



I'd like two trusted options for each position, with an extra option down the spine of the team in defence, midfield and attack.

[Nick]

2018/19 Youth Intake





Not bad for the first one, particularly as we're a second division team. Ability and potential looks good, but those personalities are a real of shite. Casual, fickle, low self-belief, temperamental and unambitious are all fairly useless. The main man, Mensur Ramadani, is listed as fairly professional though, so that's a bonus. Physically, he looks good for his age, while he has a good first touch, vision and technique. Lots of 7's, 8's and 9's that will make him look a lot more well-rounded when they move to 10's.

Augustin Houri also looks promising. A balanced personality is something to work with, while he has decent potential. Another one that's fairly quick, he is good at tackling and has good decision making, concentration and bravery. Our fullbacks act as wing backs, so he needs a bit of work on his attacking attributes, but the base is there. Flavien Ferreira looks solid too, although it's notoriously hard to develop goalkeepers. I like my goalkeepers to be a bit more commanding and better in the air, but he has good handling, decision making and positioning, which is rare at a young age. Concentration and reflexes are also good.

[Ben]

Fantastic start Nick - I had a save with Servette a good time ago, probably talking FM12 or and always enjoyed the 10 team league as you get to know the teams and players. Was on my list to revisit and got a little way in with Le Mont last year but the game went all strange upon my promotion to the top flight.

[Nick]

A Decent Slice of Luck to End the Season



Straight into the meat of it. This was the title race to end all title races. Lausanne can feel more than slightly aggrieved, especially as they subsequently lost the playoff to Neuchatel Xamax and will play in the Challenge League again next year. As you can see from the table, we were split by just the one goal on goal difference. Both had chances to assert an advantage, and both dropped points at the vital moment. They visited us in the penultimate game of the season with the winner likely taking the title. Naturally, we drew, meaning it went down to the final day. We were at away to Wil and they were at home to Aarau.

With both games goalless at half-time, we were just hanging on to our advantage. Fast forward 15 minutes and we were 2-0 down, with Lausanne also losing, 1-0. Five minutes later they were level, but we had a mountain to climb. On 75 minutes we pulled one back. Then we threw everything at them. 91st minute, the ball comes into the box and we were awarded the softest penalty you're ever likely to see. With Lausanne still drawing, we needed this for promotion. Up steps 36 year old Alexandre Alphonse, recently back from 3 months out with a hip injury and announcing he'll be retiring this summer, to send the keeper the wrong way and send us to the Super League!



Our end of season form was a bit patchy. Fixtures added up after the winter break and we probably took our eyes off the ball due to the fantastic cup run we had. We came within a minute of winning the Swiss Cup and qualifying for Europe, but in the end St. Gallen were too good for us and we lost in extra time. The board only wanted us to reach the third round, so to beat teams like Grasshoppers and Thun on the way to the final was mightily impressive and shows we can mix it with the big boys in one off games. The real test will be whether we can do it week in, week out next season.

Summer Plans

It goes without saying that this summer, and next season, are massive for the club and especially in terms of the save. We simply have to survive that first season back in the top flight and build from there. Not only would relegation put a dampener on the save, but I'd likely have to fully re-build due to players wanting out. I'm hopeful this summer will see me keep hold of the big players and add to what will be a squad thin on quality. Early signs suggest we'll have no money to spend and only a very slight increase in the wage budget so I imagine I'll be going down the loan route.

[Nick]

A Troublesome Summer

First things first, I'm getting nothing from this board. A plethora of over-paid, under-skilled staff were allowed to leave over the break but getting replacements in has been a real struggle. Every attempt to ask the board for more money for staff wages was rebuffed without hesitation. As it stands, I've managed to bring in the best I can afford, but we're woefully under-staffed with guys on as little as £250 per week.

Granted, last season's financial outlook was bleak. I think we hit a debt of around £1.4m at one point, but prize money, increased TV money and sponsorship has seen us out of the red and into the black with £700k currently in the account. I've not seen a penny of it though. I was killed by 25% wage increases across the board from promotion. That put me over the wage budget with kids in the U21's on £700-£1,000 per week. I've got rid of 4 or 5 of them, but I can't afford to bring much in. I've loaned in Erik Majetschak from RB Leipzig for no wage contribution and I've extended the loan deals of Timothe Cognat and Daniel Follonier from Luzern for another season. Other than that, I've had to make do with promoting Bertrand Tusiama, Alexis Antunes, Ibrahima Diallo and Damiano Napoli from the youth team in a bid to pad out the squad and fast-track their development.



This is what we'll be coming up against this season over 36 games. Basel are favourites for the title, having won it last time out, while we're actually not predicted bottom. That honour goes to Neuchatel Xamax, although with both of us given odds of 1000/1 to win the title, there isn't much in it. Above us, Lugano are 'only' at 150/1, which gives you some idea of the gulf in class and how the media thinks the season will pan out. The board want us to avoid automatic relegation and if we can finish ninth and scrape through that playoff, I'll be delighted.

It's going to be a struggle, this much is obvious. Last season it took 41 points, and 10 wins, to finish 8th and away from any sort of playoff. I'm not sure where we're going to get 10 wins from, looking at the table, but we'll give it a right old go nonetheless. Up first? Away at Basel. Welcome to the Super League, Servette.

[Nick]

Lads! We served them up good and proper. Went in 2-1 down at half-time and I was gutted because both their goals came from set pieces and we'd played well. Second half we blew them away, even had one disallowed as well.

Bad news is that's the element of surprise out the window!

[ianf]

Looks like a nice project!

[Nick]

So Far, So Good: A Quarter of the Season Done



If 40 points is the target we should be aiming for, then we're bang on that average. 10 points from every nine games, or each quarter, and we should be fine. After the win away at Basel in game week one, we beat Lugano 2-1 at the Stade Geneve to give me real optimism for the season. That optimism was cut short as we picked up one point from the next five games. Each of the losses was by the odd goal however and I've felt we've been 'in' every single one of them. Naturally, we lack a bit of quality at both ends of the pitch and it's cost us. Luzern are the only team to beat us by more than a goal (3-1) but we ended the first round of matches with a 1-0 win against Neuchatel Xamax to sit in mid-table. It's a close league by the looks of it, certainly outside of the top three, so I imagine there'll be plenty of ups and downs between now and the end of the season.

We did manage to bring in a couple more players on loan before the window closed in the form of Simone Santoro from Palermo and Christopher Rocchia from Marseille.

[kizmarlo]

Nice start there, Nick.

It's always difficult to maintain any sort of form in a higher division, but seeing you say that you've been 'in' every game is a good sign. Stay up this season, and gradual improvements from being in the higher tier should set you right for the long term.

[Nick]

A Season Defining Run: The Halfway Stage



At the start of the season I changed our direct style to something more possession based. The idea being that, despite finishing top of the Challenge League, we only kept an average of 40% possession and giving that kind of advantage to the Super League clubs seemed counter-productive. Turns out, I don't know shit, and that style suits us far more. After the long winless run during the first round of matches, I changed back to the more direct, quicker style and it's paid off massively.

This round of games we've shown that we can keep clean sheets and score enough goals in order to survive. The 5-0 mauling from Young Boys aside (where we didn't deserve to lose THAT heavily), we've picked up some really good results against the better teams but, most importantly, we've picked up wins against the teams around the bottom of the table, giving us a real cushion between us and relegation.



The bottom four have separated from the rest of the league and we're slap bang in the middle of the pack. I daresay Basel will improve over the second half of the season and our aim, after reaching forty points as quickly as possible, is to finish sixth.

Looking ahead to the summer, I'd like to make all five of our loan signings into permanent deals, but at the moment we have -£375k in the account. Prize money for finishing sixth would be £1.8m, so enough to get us back in the black, but not enough to really invest in the squad.

Our average attendance of 6,066 is not only 8th highest in the league, but also only 20% of our capacity, while annual sponsorship only totals £262,500. Plenty of room to grow.

[mrcool]

Looks really good. Will enjoy reading this with interest

[Nick]

2019/20 Season Review: Job Done



The second half of the season never really got going, with just five wins in our 18 matches, but relegation wasn't even a remote thought this season, which is a phenomenal effort. We performed so well that if Luzern hadn't have won on the final day of the season, we'd have picked up the last Europa League spot.

The first step on the ladder has now been taken, but it's not going to be a quick rise to the top. Only Neuchatel Xamax spent less than us on wages and they got relegated. Tycoon owed Lausanne will be taking their place and they already spend £700k per year more than us on wages. Even after prize money we still have -£40k in the bank, so no transfer budget for next season.

The squad has been whittled down to 22 players, but five of them are on loan, and one has a contract expiring this summer. I'm hopeful of, once again, being able to get everyone back on loan for another year, but at the moment we can't get away from this way of squad building. I have arranged one pre-contract deal for the summer, with Italian defender Ivan De Santis joining from Trapani. Once highly rated, his career at Milan never really took off, but he offers us another top option in defence for little in terms of wages.

[Nick]

2019/20 Youth Intake

I've been so busy over the last few days, I've not had much time to play or update, but here's a little catch up to where I am now.

I've not had the money to increase any of the facilities yet, but with excellent youth facilities, excellent junior coaching and extensive youth recruitment by default, I look forward to intake day just like anyone else.



I can't help but be a little disappointed this year. Apart from the one model citizen, with barely any potential, there's not a great set of personalities here. Three of the four best players are also strikers. Nassim Barbier was the highest rated when they came through, but his 4* potential almost immediately fell to 3.5* after signing. His decision making is excellent for someone of his age and he has plenty of 8's and 9's in important places. He's not improved much at all though and his attacking attributes suggest he'll never be able to play as a wingback - support in our system, but we'll give him time to develop those. Alberto Perez, on the other hand, went in the other direction. Signed as a 3* rated player and immediately went to a 4* one. His low determination personality is a worry, but one we can beat out of him in time, and he has some impressive attributes already. Technically, he's very good with dribbling, finishing, first touch, heading and technique all above 12. I need to work on his composure, decision making and concentration, while at 5ft 9", I'm not sure he'll ever be able to play up top on his own. Simon Perin is the last one worth noting. An inch shorter than Perez, but seems to be a bit more well-rounded, particularly mentally. Decision making needs work, but already shows some good, poacher-like attributes that we can work with.

[Nick]

2020/21 Summer Transfer Window Round-Up

Transfer Budget: £118,000
Wage Budget: £69,503 per week

Despite and increase in season ticket holders from 1,991 to 2,051 and an increase in sponsorship from £262,500 to £724,000 p/a that saw our bank balance rise to a high of £2.7m, I was only given £118k to spend and no increase in wage budget.

15 players left at the end of their contracts, which allowed me to bring in the previously mentioned Ivan de Santis and Adriano Montalto on free transfers. The latter is particularly useful as he has a resolute personality to mentor those young strikers. I actually paid money for Sven Joss, £72k to be exact, from FC Thun. He comes in as a backup option, but one of those trusted backups that you don't actually mind putting into the team when needed. It wouldn't be a Servette transfer window without a couple of loans, so in come Eden Massouema and Maxime Pau from Dijon and Lille respectively. I also chose to renew the loans of Rocchia and Majetschak for a second year, while Cognat and Follonier join for a third.

We'd be absolutely screwed without loan signings. Our reputation is only just that of a Super League side, but there is a very small pool of players that are willing to join us, particularly Swiss players. We're getting a lot of joy from France and Italy which ties in nicely with the transfer restrictions I've half unwittingly applied. We'll only be signing players from countries that share a border with Switzerland - France, Italy, Germany, Liechtenstein, Austria.

We currently have an affiliation with Barcelona, but I'm hoping to change them to Lyon at some point, given the geographical proximity of the two and the fact that Lyon's youth system is pretty special, but that's a little while off just yet.

[Ben]

Great work Nick, you've made some really good progress in a short amount of time.

Youth players - I really like Perez and I think he's got the makings of a solid striker once those mental attributes reach 10. However, I think his player trait clashes with his style - he'll come deep but won't work hard enough to get back into the box, where he is a solid finisher and he's not rounded enough to be a complete forward. I, personally, would be hammering his pace and acceleration, removing the trait and getting him on the shoulder of the last defender, feeding balls into his feet or over the top if the opportunity is given. I would say that Perin is very much in the same mould. Barbier is a strange one - I'm really not sure why literally nobody is coming through with decent heading this year (yes, it can be trained but surely there is a 16 year old somewhere in the world with a decent heading ability?!) and, because of that, he's not really solid enough defensively nor has enough about him, yet, offensively. I'm also avidly against the 'one footed' approach so would be getting rid of that - can't have him facing an inside forward when he can't use/tackle with his left foot! I'll be interested in how all three of them develop.

First team - Rocchia is the perfect full back in my eyes, get Barbier to that level and you've done a great job. I place a lot of emphasis in my full backs with my style of play so they need to be so well rounded, and Rocchia is that. In fact, all of your loanees are great - I can see how they are rated, but how do they compare to your best 'owned' players?

Keep up the good work!

[Nick]

Thanks, Ben. Much appreciated.

I'd say the loan players were probably slightly better than what we have, but only because I've developed most of them over two or three years now. We do have Sebastian Wuthrich, Yoan Severin, Miroslav Stevanovich and Anthony Sauthier as our better players, so we're not doing too badly. Until this season, we've not had much outside of maybe 14/15 players, but we've started to build some depth to the squad and are now able to rotate in players that I trust, rather than players that just make up the numbers.

[Nick]

2020/21 Season Preview and First Round Review

We're joined this year by Lausanne and Aarau, and this is part of the reason why we're once again predicted to finish ninth in the league. Lausanne should have come up when we did. Bank-rolled by British billionaire, Jim Ratcliffe, they're already the third highest spenders in terms of wages in the league and had the highest net spend in the summer window. They're predicted sixth.

My board want us to battle bravely against relegation, but the squad think we'll finish mid-table. Go figure. I'd happily accept just surviving for a second season, but I'm also aware we need to start making plans in order to take ourselves to the next level. The problem is, at the moment, I'm not sure how I'm going to get us there.

I'd be surprised if Young Boys didn't retain their title. You don't finish 26 points clear one season and get overhauled easily the next. Basel, Zurich and even Grasshoppers are beyond us, certainly over a whole season. If we can finish sixth or seventh then that's a top season.



On paper we've had a solid start, but when you consider that we won our first two games, seven points from the next seven isn't overly impressive. Young Boys tore us apart, albeit in the second half, and we didn't turn up in the derby against Lausanne, but apart from that we've played fairly well. I don't know whether it's an FM19 thing or a me thing, but I'm finding clear cut chances really hard to come by and we seem to score chances that aren't even classed as a half chance. This sees me looking at the match stats and trying to look into the minutiae, when maybe I just need to take a back seat and adopt an 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' approach?

First aim is to hit 40 points and we're three points ahead of that target at this stage of the season.

[Nick]

New Deal



The first piece of stability before we head into the winter break and then the second half of the season. The board have been pretty happy since I've been here, and they made sure I had a new deal signed seven months before my old one ended. They had offered me a wage rise, but I took that out in order to keep our wage spending under more control. I also upped the offer from three to four years.

This comes at a time where I am just starting to attract interest from other sides, specifically in Brazil and Argentina. Boca Juniors, Palmeiras and Gremio have all offered me an interview in recent weeks and clearly the chairman here didn't want my head turned further!

[Ben]

Where is your manager from, Nick? I've always found it really unusual to get job offers from South America unless my manager shares the nationality - they tend to appoint within their nationality.

[Nick]

Dec 30, 2018 20:03:44 GMT Ben said:

Where is your manager from, Nick? I've always found it really unusual to get job offers from South America unless my manager shares the nationality - they tend to appoint within their nationality.

Nowhere exotic mate. Half Swiss, half French, born fairly local to Geneva.

[Nick]

2020/21 Youth Intake



Another fairly dull looking intake, with maybe one or two exceptions. In terms of potential, the brilliantly named Chancel Nkounkou Mvoutou is the highest rated, but as you can see, he's mentally fragile, and that's being kind! An unambitious personality is about as bad as it gets, so he has a lot of developing both on and off the field before he can pull on a shirt for the first team. He can cross, has good technique and is pretty decent physically, but that's about it if we're honest. Morris Piccoli, on the other hand, looks like he could be first team material in a few years time. A great personality, plus double figures in various important attributes, like tackling, positioning, concentration, bravery and stamina amongst others. Needs a bit of work on his anticipation, composure and decisions, and he's never going to be a 'sexy' fullback, but he should be very good if we play to his strengths. A resolute personality will give Aleksandar Lazic the best chance of 'making it', but he needs to work his bollocks off to get there. First touch and decision making is about all he has going for him at the moment, but given that he has the potential to be a good Super League player, I'm actually looking forward to seeing how he develops.

[Nick]

One More Round to go!



It's been a really tough few months here in Switzerland. We've struggled to put any sort of form together and, at times, our defence has been completely non-existent. I tried making a few tactical changes, but they've been more of a hindrance than a help, so I've had to admit defeat and revert back to the previous tactic, which seems to have paid off.



Top two and bottom side Aarau aside, it's one of the most even, competitive leagues I've ever known. You can throw a blanket over the teams from us in fifth down to Luzern in ninth. We were hovering dangerously close to the relegation zone, but nine points from our last three games has put a bit of a cushion between us and the bottom and has catapulted us towards the European spots. However, we're still looking down rather than up and, despite being eight points ahead of the average we need for the magical forty mark, I can't afford to relax just yet. That said, I'd be surprised if Luzern picked up eleven points in their next nine games, so we should be alright and it'll just be a case of finishing as high as possible, but nine games ago St. Gallen looked dead and buried and they've turned their season around completely.

[Nick]

An Horrific End



Horrible. Just horrible. After three straight wins, we went on a run of six defeats in a row, including going four games without scoring a goal. What on earth happens for your form to fall off a cliff so badly? It completely derailed the feel-good factor I had for the save and, but for a resounding win against league whipping boys, Aarau, we'd have been relegation playoff.



It just goes to show you, we cannot afford to have a poor run of form like that, especially given that the league is so tight at the moment. I said in the last update that I'd be surprised if Luzern picked up eleven points in their next nine games. Well, they made a mockery of that statement and used their 3-1 win against us as fuel to win six in a row and fly up the table. Anyone can beat anyone in this league and is capable of putting runs of form together. Anyone except us, apparently, which is hugely worrying for next season.

In terms of tactics, it's back to the drawing board. I'm ripping up everything we've created so far and starting from scratch. It's going to be a massive summer for the club, possibly the biggest one yet. The players we have in on loan have their contracts expiring and we can't afford to get near their wage demands, so they are going to need to be replaced. The trouble is, replacing them with similar quality is looking an impossible task. Six loan players was too many this season. Not only were they on loan, but they'd also agreed pre-contract deals elsewhere in January. Their form fell off a cliff as a result.

I struggled for a connection with the team this year. After two rounds of games, I took our position for granted and took my eye off the ball, especially towards the end of the season and have started overlooking the things that I enjoy on FM - focusing on player development and training, while building a backroom team to cope with three squads of players. Early signs suggest an increase of £4k per week in terms of wage budget, but I'll be promoting players from the youth teams and building around them, while looking for young players to bring in with a 'but-to-sell' philosophy in mind.

[fmsamo]

It might not seem like a compliment, but I'm loving the struggle of this save so far. It's great that you've not just gone up and instantly found success. It's that that'll keep you going. Winning things will come at some point and it'll be glorious when it happens!

[Ben]

Nick, I will echo what Samo said - the struggle is a great part of the save and I know that you'll be better because of it. You'll be able to really focus on a certain aspect of your team, squad or play and refine it. In turn, the success will be even sweater! Keep it up.

[Nick]

Thanks lads, you're both absolutely right of course, and I'd be saying similar if it was either of you two in the boat. When you're actually playing, it's real graft though!

It's hard to see light at the end of the tunnel at the moment. We appear to have hit some sort of ceiling where I can't see a way of breaking into the top four, top five even. It's easy to moan about money, and I do feel it's a bit of a cop-out, but we just can't afford to improve the team by paying the bigger wages:



Looking at that, we should be pretty pleased that we've managed to stay up each season because we're fighting above our station.

[Nick]

2021/22 Season Preview and Transfer Round-Up



This was the first news of the summer and the first time we've been able to make an impact on the club's facilities! The club might have excellent youth facilities, but the training facilities are only considered average, so we desperately needed an upgrade here. Sponsorship money more than doubled this year from £724,000 to £1,548,500 and, while I've not seen much of it to spend, it's taken the balance to around £4m, which enabled me to do this. Any good thoughts about an increased wage budget soon went. I either mis-read (unlikely) or it was a broken promise. It was actually cut by £5k p/w to £65k.

Once again, we are completely unfancied by everyone. The media think we'll finish ninth again, with only newly promoted Neuchatel Xamax below us, while the board once again expect us to beat the trap door and remain in the division. Odds of 750/1 for the title won't have anyone rushing to the bookies any time soon.



Starting to become a proper club. We're getting to the stage where we can loan our better young players out to the division below, which gives them a good opportunity for first team football at a decent level. If I'm brutally honest, I'm not sure any of those loanees will ever 'make' it, but one or two may surprise me.

Daniel Follonier
After three years here on loan, we managed to make the inside forward's stay here permanent. He's always been a reliable option, rarely injured and still young enough to make an impact over a few years. Luzern were happy to let him leave and, while £2.5k per week is one of my better paid players, he's not likely to break the bank any time soon.

Nicola Danieli
I went into the transfer window with a real 'scatter-gun' approach to trials and Danieli was one of the good ones. Released by Chievo, having spent his entire career at the Italian club, Danieli could be a really important player for us. I was immediately drawn in by his positive personality, determination and leadership, three things we hugely lack. He has good physical attributes, as well as a good first touch, passing and technique, as you'd expect of an Italian 'regista'. Still young enough to improve.

Guillaume Cros
Signed on a free from Jena in Germany, having started his career at Sochaux in his native France. A bit of an injury hit start for our new left back, which has affected his physical attributes, but he's a solid option for just a thousand pound per week. A good personality and highly determined, something I need to press on with, with good anticipation, team work and decision making. Not the greatest going forward, but solid enough in a world where attacking full backs are at a real premium.

Alberto Dossena
Signed on a free from Atalanta after his contract expired, Dossena has spent most of his career out on loan at various Serie B clubs. I was drawn to his physicality, top personality, good determination, decision making and positioning. His technical defensive attributes could improve slightly, but he's young enough to develop further and offers a great mentoring option for our younger players.

Maurice Covic
Came in on trial in pre-season after his release from Hertha Berlin, where he's spent his entire career, and seriously impressed. Quick, determined and can cross and dribble, something I've not found in many players in my player pool. Has a great personality, is still young enough to improve and has a good first touch and decision making. Being paid a bit of a wedge (£3k p/w) but if he can mirror his pre-season form, we'll have found a proper player.

Simone Mazzocchi
Last in after having to play proper hardball over his £2.5k wage (he wanted double). Mazzocchi impressed on trial and joins after being released by Atalanta. A real solid, all-round striker. Excellent physical attributes, but also has good finishing, composure, off the ball, work rate, teamwork and anticipation. Another one that is young enough to improve and give us the best years of his career.

Really happy with who I've managed to bring in. I don't know if I got lucky with the 'scatter-gun' approach to trials, but it's something I'm definitely going to be doing again.

I don't expect miracles this season. We're slowly building the squad with good personalities, using a mix of youth and experience, I just don't want us to be looking over our shoulder for the entire year, or going on runs of nine games without a win. We need tactical consistency, which is on me, and I'll be happy finishing fifth or sixth. Seventh at an absolute minimum.