ughhh, man what a horrible run of games. Sadly I completely under stand where your coming from. When you can't get yourbteam to perform on the attacking end it is beyond frustrating. Hopefully the team finds its groove soon.
I like the graphic transition with the new club, first month was okay, no wins but no loses and that put you mid-table but September was horrid, looks like you have a real tough UCL group with Madrid and Juventus, I think you should focus on 3rd place, having said that you only lost to Madrid 1-0 and took a point off Juve away from home so you never know. League results took a turn for the worse though, two difficult opponents within that run of games but I guess that puts you near the bottom of the league
Will need a miracle to advance in the Champions League. And the result against Dortmund; maybe it's time to fire the assistant coach. Just joking of course. Wonder what Sigi will do?
Well, maybe 4-4-2 with two CDMs and two "pure" strikers isn't exactly the way to have the team perform properly. I might try a 4-4-1-1 with Hanke behind either de Camargo or de Jong. Surely, something must be done about this horrible run of results if we don't want to end up unemployed before Christmas.
For the Champions League part, well, I believe we could do something about it. I mean, we lost against Real with a very narrow margin and we got a draw in Turin... Maybe we can draw against Real at home and defeat Juventus (at least I hope so).
Of course, advancing will only be possible if we get 6 points out of 6 against Helsingborgs, there's no doubt about it.
When you can't get yourbteam to perform on the attacking end it is beyond frustrating. Hopefully the team finds its groove soon.
Yeah, maybe they just need a shake... And benching de Jong or de Camargo could hopefully be the right move. I can't think about anything else at the moment.
League results took a turn for the worse though, two difficult opponents within that run of games but I guess that puts you near the bottom of the league
Glad you like the new graphics! Yeah, league form is worrying at the moment: we're very close to the bottom and we need some results and we need them quickly if we don't want to get involved in the battle to avoid relegation...
Not exactly the kind of start I was imagining for this season when I decided to switch to FIFA 13, but honestly I've hardly ever felt comfortable with FIFA 13, so struggling like this could also be a normal thing.
EDIT: Pic updated with the logo (sorry for the inconvenience!), the old one could be found here...
Yeah, I see where I fall short: during the build-up, when I play short and safe passes, everything goes well... Then, when I try to play that killer pass or that risky one to get some space upfront, it looks like my player can't control the ball to save his life. I know FIFA 13 is the first game to feature "first touch" errors, but they're getting so much in my way upfront that I'm wasting nearly every chance I manage to create.
Time for a change somewhere. Might be time to change formations and tactics.
Well, I've given some trust to Hanke, to start. I've had to sub off de Jong injured in the first minutes of the match against Hamburg (after benching him against Eintracht), and he's been unavailable for a couple of weeks... He'll most likely return for the next match against Werder Bremen.
Anyway, it looks like the duo Hanke-de Camargo is working a little better for now...
Most notably, our defence hasn't conceded a goal in three matches. Ecuele-Manga and Stranzl have been almost impossible to get past, and Ter Stegen has turned into a sort of concrete wall, stopping the (few) attempts at goal of the opponents that our defenders couldn't prevent.
Yeah, my defenders and Ter Stegen have been supreme in these matches. I thought the star would be Ecuele Manga, but it's Stranzl who's being even more consistent.
And then well, Ter Stegen is in a godlike form right now...
Mönchengladbach - October 18, 2012: It's a more than relaxed Marc-Andre Ter Stegen the one that we meet the day after Gladbach's win against Helsingborgs, in which he made a crucial save late into the second half to deny the Swedish team the equalizer before Hanke could score the 2-0 goal. He looks nothing like the scared youth that conceded three against Borussia Dortmund just a couple of weeks ago.
So Marc-André, what has changed since that nightmarish match in Dortmund?
Not much really. We were playing good football even last month, but we just couldn't manage to score.
Probably, luck has been more on our side lately: considering yesterday's first goal you could really say so. But honestly, I believe that something has changed in the way we feel as a team. We are more confident, and this means we play better.
We can say that this new confidence comes from the back...
If you know you've got someone that gets to make things right when you make a mistake, you are way less nervous... This is how our strikers feel right now. Bruno and Martin have been superb in the last matches, a lot of credit goes to them.
And to you: you've saved Gladbach at least a couple of times this month.
Thanks! I must admit that the beginning of the season has been worse than expected, and for a 20 year old guy like me the pressure could just be too heavy to stand in such a situation... But Sigi and, even more, Kasey put a lot of trust in me and now this trust is paying off.
It must be good to work with such an experienced keeper like Keller...
It has been fantastic since day one: Kasey really does everything to make sure his experience gets passed on to me, and for a young keeper like me this is invaluable. I feel lucky to be able to learn his secrets: it really boosts my morale and my confidence, and in turn my saves boost the ones of my teammates.
He has a lot of experience, doesn't he?
Hell yes! He was already playing, even before I was born! And he's had a great career: he spent two great years here in Gladbach and the fans still acclaim him like he's a hero... Working with such a star surely helps you improve. He told the press that he already sees me captaining the German National Team one day, and that I have a lot of potential: I'll make sure to do my best to fulfill his prediction.
Thanks for your time, Marc-André... And good luck for the remainder of the season!
It's me who has to thank you!
Dear Journal,
another month has ended and a lot of things happened lately. I've been on the bench as a manager for the first time since I'm here... And we fared great: two wins and a draw in three matches, Sigi was overjoyed with it!
The only downside is that we've been plagued with injuries: our main man at the back Stranzl, Xhaka, de Jong... All of them had to leave the pitch on a stretcher sooner or later in the first half of the month.
So, if you consider that for the remainder of the month Sigi was forced to do heavy rotation, you cannot really be unhappy with what he did.
The second half of the month started with a great away win in Bremen, with Herrmann scoring again. He's been the man of the month for us, even more than Ter Stegen in my opinion.
Then, Sigi fielded a team with two starters for the match against Greuther Fürth in the cup, and I know he still regrets it: we were impossible to recognize. Same happened against Hannover in the cup, when Sigi decided not to risk some starters and to let them rest ahead of the cup clash with Real.
And it's the Real match that got us over the moon. Ter Stegen saved each and every single attempt of theirs, and would you believe that de Jong actually scored?
Sigi almost broke his hand again in joy when he hit the bench with the plaster while bumping his fist in the air when de Jong scored during the dying minutes to make it 1-0 for us. He scored, at last! And in the crucial moment of the month no less!
The other good news is that finally Sigi is going to have the plaster removed from his right hand soon, so I'll finally be able to stop doing the nurse when I'm at home. He also lost some weight lately, now he properly fits in the staircase to the guests room: time to claim MY room back!
Very good run of results considering the injury problems. Good win over Werder and the losses you had looked like competitive games anyway with the margin of defeat being so narrow. But I think that win over Real Madrid tops it all. Impressive.
Yeah, all in all it's been a good run of results indeed. And to be honest, I really miss Stranzlk at the back. Some of the goals I conceded wouldn't have happened with him.
Well, time to look at the glass half full: Herrmann is a beast of a player!
Also half of November has gone... We had the chance to secure a playoff spot in the Champions League with a match still to go, but we wasted it. On the other hand, league form has improved a little luckily!
Looks like league form has changed for the better. Great win over Real Madrid in the UCL; too bad Gladbach couldn't follow that up with a win over Helsingborgs but all is not lost. Beating Juventus ought to be a piece of cake. So, what's it like living with Sigi?
It's a bloody nightmare! He snores so hard that I can still hear him two storeys upstairs! And, honestly, he can't cook (unless you call bratwurst and sauerkraut 'food', because it's all we'd ever get for dinner if he's cooking)!
Still, life with Sigi is somehow better than our latest results in the league:
Luckily enough, I got a message from Freddie: the Sounders are faring well, they ended the regular season 3rd, with the same points as the LA Galaxy, and will soon play the Conference Finals hoping to advance to the MLS Cup final which is going to be held mid-December... Could this be the right year?
Whoa whoa whoa..... going back to that comment about Sigi getting the cast after that Madrid game.... "I'll finally be able to stop doing the nurse" did I miss something?
Whoa whoa whoa..... going back to that comment about Sigi getting the cast after that Madrid game.... "I'll finally be able to stop doing the nurse" did I miss something?
Oh, nothing really. Just him complaining about the pain and shouting "KK! KK! Quick, here please! I'm in trouble and I need your help!" like a hundred times per day. More or less what he did when he was managing the Sounders.
few disappointing results but it's still only one loss hopefully you can bounce back
Yeah, we should've won a couple of hem, especially the one against Helsingborgs. Schalke 04 was going to be tough with the starters, imagine the carnage as I rested my main men for the match against Juventus and sent in some reserves. And this takes us to the next point: Juventus! We'll be facing them as the first match in December... And we have to make sure to at least get a draw out from that match, even if Lisandro Lopez scares me a bit.
In the league we are not continuos, but in Champions League we are doing an amazing work. Now arrive the hard against Juventus, an essential match for our next step in CL.
Despite the results, look like M'Gladbach managed to move up two spots in the table. Chalk that loss to Schalke as a lesson learned from a better team. You can beat Juventus; may the force be with you.
Whoa whoa whoa..... going back to that comment about Sigi getting the cast after that Madrid game.... "I'll finally be able to stop doing the nurse" did I miss something?
Oh, nothing really. Just him complaining about the pain and shouting "KK! KK! Quick, here please! I'm in trouble and I need your help!" like a hundred times per day. More or less what he did when he was managing the Sounders.
Lol. Yeah but I think you meant to write "being" as opposed to "doing" Doing the nurse sounds a lot more fun than being the nurse. Lol
Objectively, despite the irregular results, Gladbach is just 4 points far from CL spots and doing well in the CL. The season is alive.
Yeah, the table is pretty particular. We're not far from the battle to avoid relegation, yet we're not really far from the battle for Europe. Let's see what happens next!
Just caught up, looking at the results it seems for the most part you are doing okay, the Real Madrid win stands out the most and the recent Schalke defeat does too You kept it tight at the back after that horrid start and it has worked out well, it's good to see you move up to 12th and if you look at it, you are only 4 points off 4th place! Juventus will be a massive match I hope you can get the points needed to qualify!!
Rated E For Everyone.
Comments
For the Champions League part, well, I believe we could do something about it. I mean, we lost against Real with a very narrow margin and we got a draw in Turin... Maybe we can draw against Real at home and defeat Juventus (at least I hope so).
Of course, advancing will only be possible if we get 6 points out of 6 against Helsingborgs, there's no doubt about it.
Yeah, maybe they just need a shake... And benching de Jong or de Camargo could hopefully be the right move. I can't think about anything else at the moment.
Glad you like the new graphics! Yeah, league form is worrying at the moment: we're very close to the bottom and we need some results and we need them quickly if we don't want to get involved in the battle to avoid relegation...
Not exactly the kind of start I was imagining for this season when I decided to switch to FIFA 13, but honestly I've hardly ever felt comfortable with FIFA 13, so struggling like this could also be a normal thing.
EDIT: Pic updated with the logo (sorry for the inconvenience!), the old one could be found here...
Well, I've given some trust to Hanke, to start. I've had to sub off de Jong injured in the first minutes of the match against Hamburg (after benching him against Eintracht), and he's been unavailable for a couple of weeks... He'll most likely return for the next match against Werder Bremen.
Anyway, it looks like the duo Hanke-de Camargo is working a little better for now...
Most notably, our defence hasn't conceded a goal in three matches. Ecuele-Manga and Stranzl have been almost impossible to get past, and Ter Stegen has turned into a sort of concrete wall, stopping the (few) attempts at goal of the opponents that our defenders couldn't prevent.
Good to see that the improved attack hasn't affected the great defence (yet). 3 goals 3 CS in 3 games is excellent.
Yeah, my defenders and Ter Stegen have been supreme in these matches. I thought the star would be Ecuele Manga, but it's Stranzl who's being even more consistent.
And then well, Ter Stegen is in a godlike form right now...
So Marc-André, what has changed since that nightmarish match in Dortmund?
Not much really. We were playing good football even last month, but we just couldn't manage to score.
Probably, luck has been more on our side lately: considering yesterday's first goal you could really say so. But honestly, I believe that something has changed in the way we feel as a team. We are more confident, and this means we play better.
We can say that this new confidence comes from the back...
If you know you've got someone that gets to make things right when you make a mistake, you are way less nervous... This is how our strikers feel right now. Bruno and Martin have been superb in the last matches, a lot of credit goes to them.
And to you: you've saved Gladbach at least a couple of times this month.
Thanks! I must admit that the beginning of the season has been worse than expected, and for a 20 year old guy like me the pressure could just be too heavy to stand in such a situation... But Sigi and, even more, Kasey put a lot of trust in me and now this trust is paying off.
It must be good to work with such an experienced keeper like Keller...
It has been fantastic since day one: Kasey really does everything to make sure his experience gets passed on to me, and for a young keeper like me this is invaluable. I feel lucky to be able to learn his secrets: it really boosts my morale and my confidence, and in turn my saves boost the ones of my teammates.
He has a lot of experience, doesn't he?
Hell yes! He was already playing, even before I was born! And he's had a great career: he spent two great years here in Gladbach and the fans still acclaim him like he's a hero... Working with such a star surely helps you improve. He told the press that he already sees me captaining the German National Team one day, and that I have a lot of potential: I'll make sure to do my best to fulfill his prediction.
Thanks for your time, Marc-André... And good luck for the remainder of the season!
It's me who has to thank you!
another month has ended and a lot of things happened lately. I've been on the bench as a manager for the first time since I'm here... And we fared great: two wins and a draw in three matches, Sigi was overjoyed with it!
The only downside is that we've been plagued with injuries: our main man at the back Stranzl, Xhaka, de Jong... All of them had to leave the pitch on a stretcher sooner or later in the first half of the month.
So, if you consider that for the remainder of the month Sigi was forced to do heavy rotation, you cannot really be unhappy with what he did.
The second half of the month started with a great away win in Bremen, with Herrmann scoring again. He's been the man of the month for us, even more than Ter Stegen in my opinion.
Then, Sigi fielded a team with two starters for the match against Greuther Fürth in the cup, and I know he still regrets it: we were impossible to recognize. Same happened against Hannover in the cup, when Sigi decided not to risk some starters and to let them rest ahead of the cup clash with Real.
And it's the Real match that got us over the moon. Ter Stegen saved each and every single attempt of theirs, and would you believe that de Jong actually scored?
Sigi almost broke his hand again in joy when he hit the bench with the plaster while bumping his fist in the air when de Jong scored during the dying minutes to make it 1-0 for us. He scored, at last! And in the crucial moment of the month no less!
The other good news is that finally Sigi is going to have the plaster removed from his right hand soon, so I'll finally be able to stop doing the nurse when I'm at home. He also lost some weight lately, now he properly fits in the staircase to the guests room: time to claim MY room back!
Well, time to look at the glass half full: Herrmann is a beast of a player!
Still, life with Sigi is somehow better than our latest results in the league:
Luckily enough, I got a message from Freddie: the Sounders are faring well, they ended the regular season 3rd, with the same points as the LA Galaxy, and will soon play the Conference Finals hoping to advance to the MLS Cup final which is going to be held mid-December... Could this be the right year?
More or less what he did when he was managing the Sounders.
Yeah, we should've won a couple of hem, especially the one against Helsingborgs. Schalke 04 was going to be tough with the starters, imagine the carnage as I rested my main men for the match against Juventus and sent in some reserves. And this takes us to the next point: Juventus! We'll be facing them as the first match in December... And we have to make sure to at least get a draw out from that match, even if Lisandro Lopez scares me a bit.
Will be interesting to see how you approach the Juve game with a draw being enough for you to advance.
Lol. Yeah but I think you meant to write "being" as opposed to "doing"
I believe it'll be them trying to impose their game, hopefully we can avoid it. Still, Lisandro Lopez scares me a little.
Thanks! I also hope so!
Yeah, the table is pretty particular. We're not far from the battle to avoid relegation, yet we're not really far from the battle for Europe. Let's see what happens next!
Well, I try to do my best but at times my English still isn't that good.