Posted by Football Manager Guru in Welcome to this special post, which is written up after completing an amazing season with Wolves. Originally I intended to write about the in-depth analysis of my Football Manager season with Wolves in the same post as Wolves 09/10 Season Run-In, which was published at the same time at this article. However, I discovered that I have so much analysis to write about, that it deserves its own article.
8th Position Finish In League
Wolves finished 8th in the league, with 64 points, 3 points away from a Europa spot. Before the season started, pundits tipped Wolves to be one of the team to be relegated this year, but we made them eat their words as we achieved a respectable position in the top half of the table.
This finish was met with many surprises in the media, as we were tipped to struggle this season. I guess you can say Wolves are the surprise team of the season. And we made this a fact through the sweat and blood we lost for the team.
The Importance of Team Spirit
Money cannot buy you titles, as Manchester City learned the hard way in real life. Money cannot buy you teamwork, and the drive to give your heart and soul to the club. And I believe I have fostered that in my Wolves squad. There are no egos in my squad and the media often praised the good dressing room spirit in the Wolves squad.
Many managers in Football Manager overlook the importance of whether your squad is gelling well or not. Sometimes the difference between title winners and tittle contenders boils down to whether the players are willing to work hard for one another. This will be something I will take into due consideration when I purchase players in the summer.
Sure, some players will come and go, but I have to keep the good core players to a certain extent because they made Wolves what it is today, and a mass exodus of players will only result in problems gelling the squad.
Team Statistics Review
Wolves had the 3rd best Home records in the league this season. Molineux is not an easy ground to come to and get results as we have shown. Only Chelsea and Tottenham have better home forms than us. Molineux always gives us a huge advantage in this sense.
We were 6th in terms of our away form, and that’s not too shabby for team that is termed relegation contenders this season. I also believe our away form could be much better if only our defence is not so nervy when playing away from home. Not to worry though, this problem will be fixed in the next transfer window.
Wolves also scored the most goals in the whole league, even more than league champions Manchester City! If only we did not have a leaky defence in the first half of the season, we could be ending up so much higher in the table.
Wolves also scored the most goals from corners (Berra scored probably like 99% of all of them lol). We scored a total of 16 goals from corner and that means 18% of our goals this season came from corners. It pays off well to have a CB who does so well at corners. Expect the same statistics next season!
Berra did the Wolves squad proud by being nominated to be in the starting XI for the players’ team of the year for this season.
Individual Performances
Krivets and David Jones did us proud by getting into the top 3 from most assists this season. Krivets had 15 assists while Jones had 14 assists. This came as a surprise to me as all along I felt that Jones was not more of a creative player than Milijas, yet the statistics tell me otherwise. I will not underestimate Jones from now on I guess. Krivets who was bought at 1.7 million is looking to be a real bargain now isn’t he? Considering Arshavin has 17 assists and probably cost at least 20 million dollars. Great season for Krivets, he has matured into a great player on the big stage.
Stearman also did us proud by topping the charts of the most number of tackles per game at an astounding 7.18 successful tackles per game. That is far ahead of the 4.99 tackles per game in 2nd position. Shevchuk who I bought at 450k at the winter transfer window also came in 3rd for most tackles per game at 4.92. What a bargain buy he is turning out to be. I wonder why he is relatively unknown in the FM community though.
Fonseca showed that footballers can age like fine wine as he was the most accurate striker in the league, with 79% of his shots being on target.
It is a pity Fonseca did not make it to the top of the top scorer list though. He stands at 16 goals this season 10 behind top goalscorer Carlos Tevez.
Shevchuk showed once again why he is a great buy as he topped the list for the distance covered per 90 minutes. He ran an average of 13.6km up and down the left flank. Best bargain buy for a Football Manager 2010 left back? Probably. He cost only 450k.
Berra won a total of 6 man of the match awards, which is same figure for the top 6 footballers. All the goals he scored from corners this season has helped us tremendously.
Karl Henry, Berra and Milijas appeared in every single game of the season. That is dedication for you.
Squad Evaluation
Achieving the 8th position was the result of a combined effort from all the team players, some more some less. At the end of the season it is time to see if the money the players are earning are justified for the results that are producing. That is the most basic skill a good manager must possess.
A quick look at the wage charts in my squad tells me that Kevin Doyle is the top earner for the club, earning 25,000 per week. At this point my mind was already made up to sell Doyle in the summer as he was simply too inconsistent a player. Sure he has some good stats as a player, but he never ever utilizes them on a regular basis. Total waste of the club’s money paying him 25,000 a week.
Here is a closer look at Doyle’s statistics. For every 81 goal attempts, he scores only 9 of them. That’s 11%. Meaning he only converts 11% of the chances he has as a striker, and he is earning 25,000 a week which is the most in my squad.
Compare this to Fonseca’s performance this season. Fonseca is bought for a mere 750k, earns half the wage of Doyle at 10,000 a week, yet his a goal conversion percentage of 27%. This is far better than Doyle’s 11%. In addition he also has an 80% accuracy rate on the shots he make, compared to the Doyle’s 58%.
This simply means Doyle has to go.
The Wolves best XI as computed by the game. I agree with everything except MICHAEL BALL at left back? You’ve gotta be kidding me after all the mistakes he had made this season. Shevchuk should be in his place instead.
Goalkeepers (GK)
Enyeama has done a brilliant piece of job this season, sure we might have conceded quite a bit of goal due to a leaky defence, but without Enyeama it would have been disgraceful to see how much goal we might have conceded. Enyeama was signed for a mere 325k at the start of the season and he was already looking to be one of the more consistent keepers in the game. A definite keeper
Right Back (RB)
No questions who my no.1 right back is. Stearman of course. Stearman has the most number of tackles per game out of all the players in the EPL. And he has many many more years to go at the club. Definite Keeper
Kevin Foley will likely to be sold off though. In case you have no idea who he is, he is my backup RB, and the fact that someone is interested in buying him for 2 million means it is a pretty good deal. I will look out for an even cheaper right back. To Be Sold
Left Back (LB)
Shevchuk has kept Michael Ball that crap out all of the 2nd half of the season with his stellar performances. He covers an incredible distance down the left flank to defend and attack so much so he runs the furthest per game in the whole of EPL. He will be 31 next year though, it might be wise to get a younger left back to understudy him. Definite Keeper.
Michael Ball aka C-R-A-P. (If you have been following my blog, you will know why I have so much against Michael Ball). To Be Sold.
Center Back (CB)
Otamendi has been nothing but brilliant this season. Although his 3 red cards did cause us to drop some points like the game against Man City where we were leading 2-0 at one point. However, he is still of a tender age and I firmly believe he will blossom into a world class defenders. Besides he is only being paid 2,900 a week, what a steal. Definite Keeper.
Berra has been scoring goals from corner as tough he is a tall striker all season. So much so, that Wolves have scored the most corner in the whole league all thanks to him. A great threat in the opposition penalty box and a consistent performer at the heart of our defence. Paid 5,000 a month. Another steal. Definite Keeper.
Ronald Zubar is over paid in my opinion. He is paid 13,000 a month and yet he is kept out by Otamendi who keeps on performing more consistently and makes lesser mistakes. Zubar has attracted the interest of many clubs and I will be more than happy to offload him in the summer for more transfer funds. To Be Sold.
Will be looking for another defender in the summer to provide cover after Zubar’s gone. I am sure someone can fill his shoes for a cheaper price per week and with more consistent results.
Defensive Midfielders (DM)
Hasebe, my reliable Japanese DM, has been ever present this season and I think he only missed 1 game via injury. Does nothing spectacular, yet never ever makes any stupid mistakes. Runs his heart out for the team to close down the opponents, great cheap DM suitable for mid-table squads like us. He was bought for 1.5 million only last season. Definite Keeper.
Castillo my another DM will finish his loan spell this season. To Be Sold.
Will be buying maybe an even better DM than Hasebe into the squad. This is largely due to the fact that while Hasebe is very reliable and consistent, an anchorman with great vision and passing would be good for my Wolves squad as many of our goals originate from counterattacks. And a creative anchor man could bring so much more to the team.
Center Midfielders (CM)
Karl Henry has been every present as vice-captain this season, playing every single game. However, I am pretty sure that if I have to sell any of my midfielders it would be Henry who has to go first. Henry’s game is very one dimensional and is very suited for a defensive role and not an attacking one. If I have a good DM convering the back 4 I would rather have a more creative midfielder in his place. To Be Sold.
Milijas is a player I will never sell because I never know when I will need him. His long range shots rating of 20 has saved us many times this season when we cannot break down the opponent’s defence and while his strength might not lie in assists, his is a huge threat from long range and provides something other players in the team can’t. Definite Keeper.
David Jones has the 3rd most assists in the whole league. How could you not keep a player like this? Definite Keeper.
Attacking Center Midfielder (AMC)
Krivets has blossomed into a consistent performer at the highest level ever since his 1.7 million move here. Able to finish nicely and calmly when set through on goal from time to time. 2nd highest assists in the whole league. Definite Keeper.
Sergio Canales my spanish wonderkid was bought for 2.1 million in the winter transfer window and he has showed glimpses of brilliance and contributed to a few assists in the few appearances he had in the 2nd half of the league. Hasn’t really gave him a run of games yet but I strongly agree with my scouts he has huge potential to be a great player. Definite Keeper.
Strikers (ST)
Doyle. Enough Said. To Be Sold.
Ebanks-Blake turned out to be a surprisingly good striker and I severely underrated his usefulness. He is best used against teams who play a high defensive line and have slow defenders as his pace is pretty terrifying. At one point in time, he was the top scorer for Wolves. Definite Keeper.
Kikin Fonseca. Now here comes my dilemma. Fonseca is a player I purchased for 750k pre-season and now there is an offer coming in for him at 2.3 million. And he is already 30 years old. It would be a good opportunity to make some money of him. However, Fonseca is such an accurate stirker of the ball, I can’t help but wonder if he will come useful as a striker. I guess it all boils down to whether I desperately need to offload him to raise transfer funds or not. To Be Decided.
In addition I know I have to bring in someone more capable to replace Doyle, and I believe that can be done with a bit of scouting, considering how bad Doyle used to perform for me. Perhaps one or two strikers will do Wolves good.
Moving On To The New Season
Berra was voted the Wolves’ Player of the Year, and rightly so, after all the crucial goals he has scored for me from corners.
In other exciting news the board of directors have decided to EXPAND THE STADIUM! This is truly exciting news. This move will solidify Wolves’ rise to a higher status in the Premier League.
Most Importantly, The Moment You and I Have Been Waiting For
Wolves is awarded a total of 35.5 million for our transfer budget next season!
This is the effect of managing wage balance carefully this season, and making sure we get rid of players who are overpaid early in the season. Players playing for low wages yet doing really well like Otamendi and Berra also helped to make this happen.
With this huge transfer fund, I know you are just as excited as me to bring in new signings. Off the top of my head I already am thinking of bringing a few big guns to ensure we can challenge for the top 6 spots next year. Who do I have in mind? Feel free to speculate (:
Let’s just say, I am thinking of bringing in a class striker, a midfielder and another defender to shore up our defence.
Guess you will know in due time when I make my next post.
As we come to the end of this post, I would like to thank you sincerely from the bottom of my heart, for reading every single post of mine on this incredible Wolves journey. Managing the squad and at the same time hear from you, the club’s virtual fans, was immensely satisfying. Thank you for feeling sorry for the team when we played badly, and being genuinely happy for the boys when we emerge victorious against all odds.
That’s the end of our season, and we could not have done it without you. Looking forward to seeing you again, in season 2010/2011.
Till then, I am off to buy some players (: CHEERS!
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That’s a great analysis mate and a lot of work put into it. You really seem to be quite passionate about the game, thanks for sharing that passion and good luck in the new season!
@Johnny
Thank you for your kind words. It feels great when a veteran of the FM community recognizes the work you put in (: Thank you for all the hard work you’ve put into FM Story as well, I’ve been reading it for a really long time now, and it’s one of my sources of inspiration when i set up my own blog on FM. It’s people like you and the other people who comment on this site that keeps the community alive. Cheers!
Hi Jason, i agree with Johnny that you had made a very good analysis. My opinion for Fonseca, if you can find a very good striker and excess wage budget. Keep him,i think he can be a reliable back-up but probably he won’t be too happy about it.
I think your board has the same ambition as you. Expanding the stadium and still giving you a lot of money for transfer dealings, thats great. I am waiting to see your signings for next. Don’t keep us waiting:)
Good luck for next season, i will be cheering for your Wolves team.
Hi Lye, I am drawing up the possible transfer targets I would like to purchase later as we speak, not all will be successful but I am pretty sure the 30+ million dollars given by the board will be put to good use. Thanks for the advice on Fonseca, that helped a great deal. (:
An excellent analysis of your squad.
I remember buying Karl Henry in FM09, and he really was disappointing, but somehow managed to sell at the end of the season for the same price I bought him. I think it’s because he tends to stop the play, which really doesn’t suit the style I like to try and play.
Agree with your assessment of Doyle. For me he rates as an okay player, but if you’re not banging in lots of goals as a striker, you need to be creating assists. Looking at his history, he is very successful in the Championship but struggles a lot in the Premiership.
hey there ziggy (:
Thanks once again for that excellent post on shoring up your defence, I am sure the community found it helpful.
Yeap, Doyle was a big disappointment, I mean he’s supposedly the strongest player among my strikers (according to my assistant manager anyway lol) and yet he fluffs one on one chances, and takes too long to take his shots, somehow keepers are always able to dive at his feet or defenders will make a last ditch tackle before he could shoot.
Honoured to have you reading my blog as well (: you are one of the authors I follow before I started my own FM blog. Cheers.
Great great blog. Perhaps Im reading this three months too late but its been a fun read. Certainly captures the true essence of football management! Cheers