[Football Manager 2009] Criciúma: End of 2009 Season Review
There was great rejoicing on the streets of Criciúma — and much praise for their rookie English manager — as we won promotion back to Série B as champions. It came down to the wire, too; Santa Cruz kept us honest right to the last day of the season and finished a single point behind us. Too bloody close by half…
The final standings were:
Frustratingly, we were unable to beat Santa Cruz this season; we draw at home 0-0 and 1-1 away. Our single league defeat was a shocking 0-2 loss at home to Confiança (SE). Despite these disappointing results — and near disastrous 0-0 draw with Americano on the last day of the season — I can’t complain too much about what the Tigre and I were able to achieve in our first season together.
Our cup run was perhaps a little too short, especially given the raised expectations after we eliminated Flamengo. And, believe me, we’re still bitter after losing to our Santa Catarina rivals Figueirense in the next round. Hopefully next year’s draw will be kinder to us.
Criciúma Players of the Season
The senior player of the season, for me, was our goalkeeper Zé Carlos. The keeper played all 64 matches in our season, recording an astonishing 44 clean sheets. For a player who started his career with the Tigre back in 2003 and has seen them steadily slide down the divisions, this must have felt like redemption or at least validation of his quality. To reflect just how good Zé Carlos is, there are currently eight clubs interested in him — including Real Madrid.
The young player of the season was another life-long Criciúma player, our right wingback Patric. At just 19 years of age he, at times, carried the team. His stats for the season were: played 55, scored 3, assists 18, average rating 7.17. In particular, his performance against Flamengo has him surely cemented as a Tigre favourite. He just keeps getting better.
Our top scorer was Zulu, with 21 goals in 56 appearances. The big target man also had 15 assists for the season. He was rewarded with a new three year contract for his good form and the nod as the supporter’s player of the year. We broke the bank to stop him leaving on a free, so I am expecting a serious goal haul next season.
Criciúma Transfer Summary: The Ins and Outs
Following our victory in the Santa Catarina State Championship, the Criciúma board obviously saw some potential in me and the team and coughed up a whopping £1.1M for transfers. This was timely indeed; following the season-ending injury to on-loan striker Michel, and the grudging departure of the out of contract Jean Mossoró, we were facing a striker crisis. I used the cash injection to finance the wages for a few free transfers.
Players bought: Fábio Baiano (free, no club), Fausto (free, no club), Alceu (free, no club), Ugo Casagrande (free, from Palmeiras).
Players sold: Jean Mossoró (free, to Londrina), Alex Sandro (released), Ricardo (released).
I’ve already spoken about Alceu elsewhere, but I’ve also been delighted with how Fábio Baiano and Fausto (my club captain) have established themselves as first team regulars in midfield. Both are extremely reliable players.
As pleased as I am with the other signings, Ugo Casagrande — whom we nicked off Palmeiras for nothing — comes with a weight of expectation. At just 20 years of age, he has all the physical attributes to be a dominating centre forward. As a bit-part player towards the end of our season, he managed eight goals and eight assists (mostly from the bench). The lad was actually born Ascoli Piceno (Italy), however he has declared himself for Brazil. After rotting in Palmeiras’ reserves and not getting first team football, he’s quickly established his credentials at Criciúma and the Italian clubs are already sniffing around. In fact, I was beginning to think the managers of Modena and Rimini had bought Criciúma season tickets — they were at the Heriberto Hülse every week to see him play. Stalkers!
Looking forward
With the few additions to the squad I made, Criciúma were easily strong enough to win promotion. Even though we scraped it as champions, I think we were always destined to be promoted. If we can hang on to most of our team and sign a couple of extra squad players, then we should be able to hold our own in Série B. In particular, I’ll be shopping for a spare left winback and a striker good enough to challenge Zulu’s place in the team.
Until next time: Save Criciúma, equity immortal (or however Google translates their anthem).
Tags: Criciúma, Football, Football Manager
i’m lurking on your page! nah, just read all your updates on criciuma and i have to say you really do write well. engaging stuff. and great job with the team as well.
i simply love fm. keep it up.
@Manny FM is a drug, there’s no doubting that. Really glad you like my Criciúma updates — every game of FM that I play has its own story with twists and turns, and Criciúma are turning out to be one of the most fun teams I’ve ever managed. The depth SI put into the game is immense.
yeah, i can’t believe how much detail they get, especially with the lower and obscure leagues of countries which most people are likely to ignore. your game makes me want to start my own brazilian adventure! maybe after my roma one.