2013 AS Monaco FC - Contender or Pretender?

[aykyle]

AS Monaco FC

 

Everyone's heard about the massive additions Monaco has made this transfer window. With the additions of James Rodriguez, Eric Abidal and Ricardo Carvalho just to name a few.

What? I missed someone important? What do you mean?

Oh, that's right... none other than the signing of the biggest Colombian footballer today:

Radamel Falcao García

Everyone knows this guy. Whether you love him or fear him, his name will send shivers down the weaker spines. The former At. Madrid star has moved to AS Monaco. Will he regret that decision? Or will he become AS Monaco's favourite star?

 

The Team

I wanted to make this an authentic save. So I used the same players they used when they played their Ligue 1 Season Opener against Girondins Bordeaux.

I firstly want to say thank-you to Ashez for his invaluable help in creating a tactic. Without him, these tactics would not exist and I would be left clueless . So thank-you Ash.

 

 

Pre-Season

With the season closing in fast, I needed to fill a hole. And that hole was in between the two Goal Posts. A Goalkeeper. Sure Monaco has good keepers in Subasic and Chabbert. But I didn't want a good keeper. I wanted a great keeper. I decided to look at what my Assistant Manager suggests. One of which was none other than:

Hélton

I bought this 34 year old Brazilian from FC Porto for $3.6m at a $71k per week 2 year deal. I wanted him to start immediately. And continue to start until Monaco can afford a more younger solution.

 

To Be Continued...

[Ashez]

Good luck

[anfieldsquirrel]

Good luck mate

[MerlionMaple96]

Go Kyle go!

[Ashez]

Are you in league 1?

[aykyle]

Good luck

 

 

Good luck mate

 

 

Go Kyle go!

Thanks, guys

 

Are you in league 1?

Yes they are I used changes.txt to add their transfers(or else I wouldn't be able to afford any of them )

[Ashez]

I was just checking

[aykyle]

AS Monaco FC

 

Friendlies

This was the chance to get to know my team better and to see if my(Ashez) tactic worked. It gave the team time to mesh together with all of the new faces.

 

FC Metz vs AS Monaco FC

The game was close and I was starting to wonder if the tactic was going to work. I decided to continue with it.

 

AS Monaco vs USBCO

2 games into the new tactic and it's starting to look good. Things were finally starting to go together. And it was finally time to play our Ligue 1 debut!

But then...

One of my starters gets injured the day before the game.Thankfully just a youngster who will bounce back.

But who to replace him with? Will it be Nabil Dirar? The 19 year old Edgar Salli? Or the 22 year old Dutchmen Nacer Barazite. They were all great choices. But in the end, the choice was simple. Nacer Barazite was to take his place.

 

Notable Transfers

July

August

[craigibhoy]

Good luck with this, so far so good with ya friendlies, as typical i see man city buying loads a players to try and be man united to the top lol.

[the united guy]

Nice pre season hopefully the team will perform well in the league . Good luck

[Ashez]

Impressive start

[anfieldsquirrel]

Nice update, love the detail .

[Keraviln]

Nice/Shaky start? (I dunno).

 

I love the way it's presented . You'll be fine.

[J-savage]

Great update

[aykyle]

AS Monaco FC

 

August

With the friendlies over, it was time to get down to the real business: Winning the League. We started off with AC Ajaccio. With their two star players Guillermo Ochoa in the goal and Milan Jovanovic as their striker, I knew our Ligue 1 debut would be a tough one. Or would it?

AC Ajaccio

Halftime

Falcao was the star of the half with his late goal that gave us the lead. As we all headed back into the locker room, I couldn't help but feel confident about the new tactic.

Final

After the first half lead, we came out of the tunnel with "swag". James Rodríguez was the star of the Second Half. Scoring two goals to seal the victory.

Man of the Match:

James Rodríguez

 

With our first win in the books and a solid game, there was no time for celebration. We had to get back to work and prepare for the next game.

FC Sochaux-Montbéliard

Halftime

Falcao took charge early and scored his second goal of the season. The team was playing strong and passing well. The game was ours to lose.

Final

We were scoreless in the second half but managed to keep them from scoring and secured the win.

Man of the Match:

Radamel Falcao

 

Two wins in our return to the Ligue 1. We were flying high. Bursting with confidence. But we couldn't bask in the glory for long. As our next game was only 3 days away.

Coupe de la Ligue

RC Lens

Halftime

Falcao once again gave us the lead at the half. Which became the norm for him. He gave us the lead in every game this season.

Final

We were up 2-0 and were fairly confident that we would win. That confidence only grew as James Rodríguez opened the second half with a fabulous goal.

Man of the Match:

Radamel Falcao

 

It happened again. One of or star players gets injured before we play a big game. But how could we replace such a player? Why none other than the 30 year old German, Andreas Wolf!

We were 3 games into the season and had yet to lose. But those 3 wins meant nothing if we couldn't beat the French powerhouse that was known as Paris Saint-Germain. It was time for business.

Paris Saint-Germain

Halftime

Scoreless at the half, we were struggling on all sides. Our shooting was horrific and our tackling was average. We need to perform better if we were to beat this powerhouse.

Final

Our first "real" game and we couldn't manage a win. We had a glimmer of hope that was ripped away from us in a called off goal by James Rodríguez.

Man of the Match:

Ezequiel Lavezzi

 

Notable Transfers

Sandro from Tottenham to Barcelona for $21m

Hernanes from S.S. Lazio to Tottenham for $20m

Manuel Fernandes from Besiktas to Valencia for $17m

Tim Krul from Newcastle to Liverpool for $15.5m

 

With August in the books, we looked forward to September with notable games like OGC Nice in the Coupe de la Ligue 3rd Round and Montpellier HSC in a Ligue 1 clash.

 

Thanks for the comments, next update won't be until the end of the season, and then I will update it twice a season with notable games, transfers etc.

[Ashez]

The formation seems to be out classing everyone!

[ManagerAddict]

Well done mate! That Agger transfer looked a bit suspicious...

[aykyle]

AS Monaco FC

The season is over. Did Monaco take the Ligue 1 by storm? Or did they spend 100m+ for last place?

A lot of things will be in spoilers. Simply because this is a big update. Won't be as big in the future

 

A Close Call..

The game was close. I was starting to question if I had chosen the right tactic.

The game was winding down and was destined for Extra Time... until

a Penalty! What luck. My top scorer has a chance to win the game!

But..

It's in! He scores. But was there enough time left for them to return the favour?

What a nailbiter. This game had me question my entire lineup.. Changes had to be made. Luckily, I recently bought an amazing youngster. But has he progressed enough to be able to fit into the lineup? The youngster is none other than...

I had a feeling that Cabella would fit right at home in this powerhouse squad. But it was time to throw him in the lion's den and let him play with the big boys!

The Battle For the Title

It was time to face another contender for the Ligue 1 Title: Olympique Lyonnais.

So far this "powerhouse" is turning out to be a "powerflop"

​Another successful game. Things are looking good for Monaco. But can they keep this streak alive?..

The Return of PSG

It was that time of the year again... PSG time. The team that handed us our first loss of the season.

The first half was to an end. PSG had struck first, but we quickly followed that goal with one of our own, thanks to none other than James Rodriguez!

Could we take over the second half and defeat them?

PSG struck first. And they struck hard. We were down 3-1 until James Rodriguez tried his best to save the game. Unfortunately his effort was too late.

It happened again. We were on a roll until we faced PSG. With them destroying our winning streak once again.

Will we ever slay the dragon?

After the events of the last game, the team had some pent up anger to release.. and it just so happened that EA Guingamp was there to take the full force of it.

Reclaiming Our Dignity

It felt good to win again. Falcao in particular had some pent up anger from his terrible performance against PSG.

​Fee Fi Fo Fum..

The Giants return.. sitting atop their kingdom that is the Ligue 1 table. It was time to put them in their place. Or will we once again be left with our heads down?

Deja Vu. This seems awfully familiar... but will the results be the same?

Great.. extra time.  Could the end be near?

Extra time was over. And things were tied up. It was all up to the shootout... who will come out on top?

Victory was OURS!

Vengeance Was In Their Reach

It was time to face Olympique Lyonnais again! This time in the Coupe de la Ligue Final.

Would they claim a victory over us?

Another humiliating defeat led by Falcao. Will Olympique Lyonnais ever beat us? Or will they forever remain in our shadow.

The Bigger They Are... The Harder They Fall...

Time for the French Cup Final against Stade Rennais FC. How hard could it be?

Apparently extremely hard..

The Chase Begins..

There's one month left in the season and we are trailing PSG by 7 points. Could we overcome the deficit? Or will PSG once again put us to shame?

Our first game will be against Olympique Lyonnais.. oh boy.

We were losing.. against OL?! Will our chase for first be over before it even begins?

It seems as if we underestimated them. But there's still enough time to claim first!

The Chase Is Over..

Two loses in a row.. I thought things couldn't get worse... until:

Our hearts were broken. The entire season was wasted..

League Table

Season Awards

Top Scorer

All-Star

Doesn't look like much there, but he was a tremendous help and has improved greatly since the beginning of the season.

Well, there you have it! Season 1 of the AS Monaco Saga.

Again, sorry for the big update. Next update won't be as big.

[dirtboy]

Interestingtactic...

[the united guy]

Great season unlucky in the league but next year it is your's for the taking  

[MerlionMaple96]

Superb Update Kyle! Pure Class and Very Entertaining. It's a Shame You Under performed Against PSG though Hopefully Ligue 1 will be yours next season.

[Ashez]

Talk about a phone crashing update!

Better luck next year

[aykyle]

Thanks for the comment guys (almost put the word "cheers" in there . You guys are rubbing off on me)

 

@Ash, yea I know. That's why I put it all in spoilers. I didn't realize how many I took but I felt putting in games that were detrimental to the league table was a must.

It's mostly because I include the statistics. I'm probably not going to show them any more as it doubles everything up.

 

anyways, I promise it won't be that long anymore

[dirtboy]

Thanks for the comment guys (almost put the word "cheers" in there . You guys are rubbing off on me)

@Ash, yea I know. That's why I put it all in spoilers. I didn't realize how many I took but I felt putting in games that were detrimental to the league table was a must.

It's mostly because I include the statistics. I'm probably not going to show them any more as it doubles everything up.

anyways, I promise it won't be that long anymore

Cheers mate

[aykyle]

AS Monaco FC

 

Preseason Update

Preseason Games

AS Monaco at Havre AC

AS Monaco at SR Colmar

AS Monaco at GFC Ajaccio

 

Preseason Team Transfers

Transfers In:

Samuel Umtiti - Olympique Lyonnais

Umtiti was signed to a 5 year, $90k p/w contract with no signing bonus

Esteban Andrada - Lanús

Andrada was signed to a 5 year, $55k p/w contract with a $1.05m signing bonus with a $2.6m Clean Sheet bonus

 

Transfers Out

Jakob Poulsen - $4.6m

FC Bayern signed Poulsen to a 4 year, $25k p/w contract with an $800 Assist bonus

 

Valère Germain - $1.1m

LEMANS FC signed Germain to a 5 year, $9.2k p/w contract with a $420 Goal and Assist bonus

 

Preseason Notable Transfers

A little weird David Villa goes BACK to Barcelona?

Next update in January

Thanks so much for the comments

Average Age for Squad - 25.26

[Ashez]

Great signings mate, they should help you push on and last for years to come .

[the united guy]

Pre season looks great and some nice signings, this season smells like success 

[aykyle]

I had to pay an arm and a leg for Umtiti(gave up Terence Makengo($6.6m) for him! Which left me with little funds for a young GK(Subasic is only 28, but he isn't developing like I would like. And Helton is getting old(35)

But I am really happy with Andrada. As he's looking great already

 

Preview - Falcao gets injured for a month... how will I do without him?

 

Thanks for the comment, Ash

 

And Thanks to you too TUG. I'm really hoping the season is a success! I have very high hopes and will make some SERIOUS changes if we do not win the League!

[anfieldsquirrel]

Well done, nice signings .

[MerlionMaple96]

Agreed. Some decent buys. Looking forward to the upcoming season.