As the Premier league season draws to a close, TheMorty embarks on the penultimate chapter of his game and attempts to end nearly 50 years of hurt by lifting the FA Cup.

Imagine my delight at sitting on 71 points with three games to go – the exact number Newcastle managed in real life that season and 20 points more than my predecessor had managed the season before. With the league cup in one hand and the chance to lift the FA Cup in the other, it had been a fantastic season. 50 games played and 34 games won – a 68%-win rate nonetheless. I hadn’t managed to get near Arsenal at the top of the table, but they had been different class and they had the opportunity to clinch the title two games early with just a single point at home to Boro.

Arsene Wenger may have just stepped down from Arsenal this year after a calamitous season, but no-one could dispute his wizardry in 2002. He was a master of the dark arts, conjuring world class youngsters who continually set the Premier League alight. None more so than Patrick Vieira. The Frenchman was on his way to Ajax in 1996, when Arsene picked up the phone and persuaded the 17-year old to take a flight to London instead and join the Gunners in a bargain £3.5m deal. Vieira made the first of his 279 appearances against Middlesbrough so it was fitting that it would be that man who would score the goal to secure the title at Highbury.

With just two games to go, Arsenal had the chance to break a then Premier League record of 100 points – something only just managed for the first time in the competitions history by Guardiola’s Manchester City.

Despite the top position being decided, there was still a lot to play for. Southampton had already been relegated but there were two spots left for the drop and it would two from Derby, West Ham and Charlton. In the immortal words of the spice girls, two became one when a 0-2 Loss away at Everton sealed the Ram’s fate and resigned them to a season in the second tier of English football.

Championship manager often throws up a few LOLs and one thing that gave me a giggle was the sight that future Newcastle laughingstock and foul-mouthed haranguer Joe Kinnear had been given another job…

Poor lads, in the game they’d been beaten by Newcastle twice were languishing in the bottom half of the table and now they had this clown, who’s biggest achievement was winning the Daily Mirror Manager of the Year award in 1997.

All eyes were on the FA Cup final that I’d worked so hard to and as luck had it, I was given the chance for a final (Final) warm up.

Squad vs Blackburn (Away)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Duff, Risp, Yepes, Crainey, Dyer, Kerr, Bakircioglu, Shearer ©, Kallstrom, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Solano, Selakovic, Barsom (on 68), West (on 68).

Was that it? I was expecting a really tough ride. For Blackburn to come storming out of the blocks and make a statement. I expected them to attack hard and hit the wings and shell the Newcastle box with balls from Damien Duff’s mortar of a left foot. I expected Matt Jansen to terrorise my centre backs and to force Chiotis into a number of really difficult saves. Instead, we ran out comfortable winners.

Tó Madeira hit a goal either side of half time before Alan Shearer netted against his former club to make it 3-0. However, there was a bit of drama late on when Duff was clean through facing Chiotis 1-on-1 in the box and our ‘keeper brought him down. Giving away a penalty and taking an early bath for his troubles. I wasn’t concerned about conceding the penalty, nor was I concerned that I’d already made 3 substitutions and would have to place Kieron Dyer in goal. In fact, I didn’t even care that Tugay dispatched the penalty and my team was robbed of a clean sheet in the last minute. Despite not being concerned, I was still distraught. I was on the verge of an FA Cup final and my star goalkeeper looked like he would be suspended. Disaster.

Now, the best thing about the 01/02 season was that the dismissals worked very differently to how they do today. You wouldn’t be told when they player would be suspended and which games he would miss. Instead, the dismissal would go to an independent panel, you’d be given two weeks to submit an appeal and after that point – if you opted to appeal – the hearing could take another two weeks. Meaning effectively your player could get a red card and still play for an entire month before having to serve the suspension. I’d forgot about this, this was bloody brilliant! Playing Football Manager 2018 I’d lose a player immediately, but here a red card could be controlled. I was going to play this smart and submit an appeal… at the very worst, Chiotis would miss the start of next season. I didn’t care about next season, I cared about lifting that jug!

Beating Blackburn had secured my place in the top four and the Champions League next season… naturally the board were delighted…

Squad vs Derby (Home)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Duff, Risp, Yepes, West, Dyer, Kerr, Selakovic, Shearer ©, Kallstrom, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Gomez (on 68), Bakircioglu (on 68), Robert, Crainey (on 68).

I had one last game before the final and it was at against already relegated Derby County. I was worried about injuries but still decided to field a strong team. I didn’t want the lads to take their foot off the gas so close to the season ending showpiece.

The game was an absolute riot. Mark Kerr and Tó Madeira bagged a goal 4 minutes either side of half time. Midfielder Adam Murray was dismissed for the away side for a two-footed tackle with 15 minutes left, which gave both Shearer and substitute Gomez the space to add a third and fourth to our tally.

The goals were flowing and we were in excellent form going into the biggest and most important game of the playthrough…. The FA CUP Final…

The FA CUP FINAL

Blackburn vs Newcastle

The Millennium Stadium, Cardiff

Saturday 11th May, 2002

In May 2000 Wembley stadium played host to the last FA Cup final ever to be held at the Twin Towers, as the stadium closed 5 months later to be demolished to have a brand new £789m stadium built in its place. During the transition period, all major cup finals were shifted to the nearest national stadium – Cardiff. It wasn’t as iconic but it was a fantastic 74,500 all-seater stadium that hosted some fantastic contests. In the 7 years it was active, Newcastle made it there once – sadly to receive a 1-4 thrashing at the hands of Manchester United in 2005. The Newcastle manager that day was Graeme Souness – ironically the man now standing in my way of FA Cup glory. My Newcastle team had lifted a trophy in Cardiff already this season, but it was the league cup which isn’t classed as a “major” trophy. I was desperate to make sure that I ended the season with a medal around my neck.

Getting the tactics right on this one would be tough. I had a better squad than Blackburn but they had players that could hurt me and after a very good run of form I was concerned that this could be a banana-skin in waiting. Graeme Souness is a hated figure on Tyneside and I was fully expecting him to be a thorn in my side. I decided to go for it and not change a winning formation. Keeping it 4-1-3-2.

Starting line-up:

1 – Dionisis Chiotis

2 – Mike Duff

4 – Mark Kerr

5 – Ibrahim Said

8 – Kieron Dyer

9 – Alan Shearer ©

10 – Stefan Selakovic

13 – Stephen Crainey

14 – Tó Madeira

15 – Kennedy Bakircioglü

26 – Mario Yepes

Subs:
6 – Frederik Risp

7 – Nolberto Solano

12 – Shay Given

19 – Kim Kallström

29 – Rónald Gómez

While the formation was unchanged, the personnel needed a re-shuffle. Taribo West was left out of the squad in favour of Crainey, who had the pace to match tricky winger Damien Duff out wide. Selakovic came into the midfield with Bakircioglu and Kerr to create a formidable central trio.

KICK OFF

As the ref blew his pea, Newcastle started brightly. First Madeira went close with a long-range effort and then Shearer had a strike whistle past the post. 25 minutes into the game and the Toon had attempted 5 shots with 3 being on target while Blackburn had mustered a single, paltry effort. Defensively we were sound, winning 50% of our tackles and not giving away a single foul. It was vintage stuff.

Shearer had a great shot tipped round the post and Mark Kerr thought he had scored, but with just the keeper to beat somehow the Scotsman managed to roll it wide. Half-Time arrived and it had been a well contested match, Newcastle had the better of the opportunities but the ball had spent an even amount of time across all thirds.

This was starting to worry me. I remembered back to Everton, Villa, Fulham and several matches in the first half of the season. I remembered chucking away a point at Arsenal and the time Darren Anderton scored a late equaliser at Leeds. I wasn’t exactly a stranger to being the better team and not coming out with the victory, but in a cup final of the magnitude of this – I was terrified of not making the pressure count. I opted not to roll the bones and keep things the same. Surely, we’d take a chance sooner rather than later… right?

50 minutes – Matt Jansen has a shot, it’s deflected wide. From the resulting corner David Dunn fires a volley wide.

57 minutes – Duff cuts inside and fires a shot at Chiotis who does well to palm it to safety.

71 minutes – Markus Bent plays a one-two with Craig Hignett before firing off a shot that hits the outside of the post and bounces wide.

This is not going to plan… I decided to go more defensive and weather the storm, dropping Madeira into midfield and allowing Kerr to make way for Kallstrom.

74 minutes – Markus Bent breaks the offside trap and again goes close, this time Chiotis is on hand to gather the ball.

77 minutes – Duff hits a dangerous cross into the area, but Said is on hand to clear.

80 minutes….

YES! Finally, the deadlock is broken and its life-long Geordie Alan Shearer who has the goal. It wasn’t a peach of a strike but I didn’t care! A goal is a goal and this was perfect. The usually deadly Madiera hit a shot straight at Alan Kelly, but the stand in keeper could only parry back into the 6-yard box. Big Al reacted quickest past Henning Berg and tucked it home into an empty net. Finally we had the lead! That was it, on came Risp and we went 4 at the back. Madeira made way for Gomez to add a bit of energy upfield as we moved to a defensive 5-3-1-1 formation.

Blackburn were shot, their heads dropped and their confidence gone. They didn’t have the energy for another attack. There it was… the words every Champ Man player dreams of seeing flashing on the screen…

We’d done it. Ian McShane, Will Greenwood, that weird bloke from the League of Gentleman… your boys took one hell of a beating!

As the fans sang my name, I reflected on my time back in the game. With two cups and a Champions League spot in the bag, this had been a very successful season… I’d re-discovered my love for the Football Management genre and had a real blast over a few months re-playing a childhood fave and one of my top 5 games.

However, I still had one job left. Now I’d played the game I could finally review it! After all, Previous Weapon’s a review site – not a blog for the ramblings of a Geordie lunatic with too much time on his hands.

Toon in next week for the final, final conclusion of this wonderful classic – Championship Manager 2001/2002.

Fresh off the back of his League Cup win TheMorty entered the business end of the season.

A place in the FA Cup final and a Champions League spot were up for grabs. To get there he’d need to get one over on the best team in the league – Arsenal.

RED CARD! Mark Kerr is sent off.

How did I get here? 36 minutes into an FA Cup semi-final against the runaway leaders of the league and I’m down to 10-men with nearly an hour left to play! I was way out of my depth. Henry, Bergkamp and Ljungberg would no doubt tear me apart. I felt like I was no longer playing a football management simulator and instead was deep into The Evil Within or Dead Space. As I feared for my life with each kick of the ball, I’d see the on-screen commentary read “van Bronckhorst beats his man” and fall to pieces. I’d been cock-sure of late, experimenting with match tactics, formations and line-ups but within 36 minutes I’d become a nervous mess that was one flashing light away from a full-on breakdown.

Maybe it was a mistake getting back into this game and I should have just ended my play-through when lifting the League Cup. I’d become accustomed to the FM 2018 3D match engine, the mid-match team talks and the modern day Arsenal who get beaten by bloody everyone! Maybe I should just quit and imagine this never happened… end the review on part 5 and try and finally finish Mafia III…

A week ago everything had been rosy. I’d won the first ever piece of silverware in the clubs modern history and I was excited to load up the game and crack on with the rest of the season. I was eagerly anticipating taking on a Leeds United outfit who had arguably one of the best squads in the game. A young Harry Kewell and a prime Mark Viduka were fearsome, but little more than puppies in comparison to my strike force of Shearer and Madeira that would leave even Vinnie Jones filling his pants.

Squad vs Leeds (Home)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Duff, Risp, Yepes, Crainey, Dyer, Kerr, Bakircioglu, Shearer ©, Kallstrom, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Solano, Selakovic, Barsom, West.

My confidence last week was at an all time high and beating Leeds was nothing more than a formality. 2 goals to the good before half time – we were strolling.

Yepes opened the scoring with a header from a Dyer cross and Madeira got in on the act just before the stroke of half time, finishing a neat 1-on-1. Even when Viduka reduced the deficit with a tap-in midway through the second half, Newcastle never looked like conceding another and it was another three points for the mags that would almost certainly confirm our Champions League place for next season. Stephen Crainey made his full debut and played a solid 7 rated game as the defence played a blinder in keeping the Whites’ attack firmly on a leash.

There was a slight piece of bad news after the game and it was on a personal note for my players with none of them making the official Team of the year. Shearer had made the bench but there was no place for Madeira (who had scored more goals than Henry this season) and there was no place for Kieron Dyer who had been fantastic all term. Instead it was the big clubs that dominated, with Aresnal and Manchester United taking over half of the starting berths between them.

While the omissions were frustrating, we had a more pressing matter at hand…

The last time Newcastle and Arsenal had met in the FA Cup was in May 1998, when both teams contested a fantastic final at the old Wembley stadium. Newcastle were unlucky in that game, having more possession and hitting the woodwork twice, but Arsenal’s class shone through and after a Marc Overmars opener, Nicolas Anelka sealed the win finishing well past Shay Given.

Now CM0102 is renowned for many of the great players in its database and Nicolas Anelka is undoubtedly the most infamous player in the game. He can be playing the best football of his career, scoring goals for fun and playing 90mins every week – but will always find something to be unhappy with:

If you’re not top of the league – “Worries that the club’s poor league position will affect his reputation”

Lose 2 games in a row – “Has lost confidence in his managers ability”

As soon as ANY club on the game is interested in him – “wants to be transfer listed”

If you transfer list ANY of his team mates – “Believes the manager’s treatment of players is affecting the team morale”

Drop him at any point – “Unhappy with his manager”

Playing well and scoring goals for fun? – “is having trouble motivating himself”

Sign ANY striker, regardless of their ability – “Worried about his future at the club”

To be fair to Sports Interactive, they got this one pretty much spot on. Anelka played for 12 different clubs in his 19-year playing career and had a reputation of being a trouble maker. So even if he comes available on the game – sign this player at your peril!

You could say Newcastle had some unfinished FA Cup business with Arsenal and even though Anelka had moved on to PSG, the remaining French contingent were just as dangerous. I approached the game with a level of nervousness. Sure, I’d beaten Man Utd to lift the League Cup but I felt lucky. Manchester United a man down for an hour certainly helped me and I’d wondered if I’d have taken to trophy over an evenly matched 90mins. I needed some redemption and an unlikely win against Arsenal might just be it.

The FA CUP Semi-Final

Arsenal vs Newcastle

Pride Park, Derby

Saturday 7th April, 2002

As Wenger and I prepared to go toe-to-toe, I decided to approach the game cautiously. I knew Henry and Bergkamp would be dangerous and wanted to make sure they were man-marked at all times. I went for a 5-3-2 formation, with three centre-backs – Risp and Yepes instructed to mark, while Said was free to pick up the spare man zonally.

Formation: 5-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Duff, Risp, Yepes, Said, West, Dyer, Kerr, Shearer ©, Kallstrom, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Crainey (on 62), Selakovic (on 36), Speed, Bakircioglu (on 27).

I’d really thought this one through. I had my tactics spot on. I gave myself every chance of progressing to the final and just 6 minutes into the game I had the lead…

GOAL! Madeira is the Scorer !!!

YES! We’ve taken the lead and it was an expert finish. Counter attacking from a defensive clearance saw Shearer and Madeira 2-on-1, the former squaring for the latter to tap into an empty net. However, the good news didn’t last and we picked up an unfortunate injury 29 minutes in. Kallstrom landing awkwardly after competing for a header and having to leave the field. Bakircioglu came on in a like-for-like swap, but just 7 minutes later – disaster struck.

RED CARD! Mark Kerr is sent off.

How did I get here? 36 minutes into an FA Cup semi-final against the runaway leaders of the league and I’m down to 10-men with nearly an hour left to play. I had to react, and I had to react quickly. I moved for a defensive approach. Pushing Dyer into a deep-lying DM role and brought on Selakovic for Shearer. It was a tough call, Alan is a much better target man and would hold up the ball but Madeira had the legs and could run the ball on the counter. I opted for the latter as my tactic and even though I’m sure Alan was inertly furious at being subbed, he was ever the professional and knew it was for the good of the win. We got to half time 1-0 up, but I knew the worst was yet to come…

As the game resumed for the second period, Arsenal came racing out of the traps. It was like Normandy Beach on D-Day, as shots were firing from all angles and whizzing inches wide of the target. Newcastle defended resolutely, but Arsenal weren’t letting up. 60 minutes in and their last 5-minute possession was at 95%. Henry had 2 goals chalked off for offsides and Taribo West and Freddy Risp were both on yellows for dangerous tackles. We couldn’t risk another sending off but I only had one sub left. I had to use it wisely. If they score once, it’s extra time and I might need the fresh legs for that… so much was going through my mind.

In the end, I rolled the dice. I’ve got the lead, lets defend it. I took off the cautioned West and brought on Crainey for his FA Cup debut. It was a tough game to come on in but he managed it well keeping Jermain Pennant quiet. Arsenal through everything at us and thought they’d snatched the draw in the 86th minute when substitute Nwankwo Kanu was fouled in the box by Risp, but the referee waved play on.

THE FINAL WHISTLE BLOWS – NEWCASTLE HAVE REACHED THE FA CUP FINAL

Incredible scenes. Had I genuinely just out-managed Arsenal? I had the complete reverse scenario as I had against Manchester United but still managed to get the same result. My confidence and my love of all things Champ Man had been restored.

Thanks to a Matt Jansen Hat-trick, Blackburn had beaten Everton and would be our opponents in the season ending showpiece – I couldn’t wait!

It was now 11pm on a Monday, I had work the next day… but come on… I was loving it! Just one more game…

In the aftermath of the game I was faced with an action point – what to do about Mark Kerr. I could discipline him, he did nearly cost us a place in the final – or I could shift the blame to the ref and appeal it. I figured my luck had been in so far – so what not chance it. The FA oddly agreed and decided to revoke Kerr’s 3-match ban. Result!

As you may remember from last week, the Arsenal Premier League game had been shifted to accommodate the Arsenal FA Cup game, so within 4 days of that epic victory – The Gunners had their chance for revenge…

Squad vs Arsenal (Away)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Duff, Risp, Yepes, Crainey, Dyer, Kerr, Bakircioglu, Shearer ©, Selakovic, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Solano, Lee, Barsom (on 79), West (on 66).

…And bloody hell did they take it. Arsenal swept aside Newcastle with ease. Henry with the goal on 37 minutes as Arsenal dominated from start to finish. Not even Martin Keown’s red card in the 78th minute could take the gloss off their performance as they bossed almost every category in the stats. This is what I love about CM 01/02, you just couldn’t make up some of the results. I beat Arsenal 1-0 with 10 men, then Arsenal beat me 1-0 with 10 men.

To be honest, I wasn’t bothered. I had a 7-point cushion from Liverpool in 5th with a trip to Anfield still to come. I had already secured a UEFA Cup spot from my merits in the League Cup and satisfied all the boards ambitions – but I still had a professional job to do on my way to the FA Cup final. Games against Chelsea, Liverpool, Sunderland, Derby, Blackburn & West Ham were next up and I needed 3 wins and a draw from 6 games to be certain of bringing Champions League football to Tyneside next season. Easy, right?

Squad vs Chelsea (Home)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Duff, Said, Yepes, West, Dyer, Kerr, Bakircioglu, Shearer ©, Selakovic, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Robert (on 82), Solano, Barsom (on 82), Risp (on 91).

Well it certainly seemed that way. Before Abramovic’s billions rolled into West London, Chelsea were a walkover! Madeira getting the first half goal and Newcastle cruising to a 1-0 victory at St. James Park.

So now just 2 wins and a draw needed for Champions League football… next up were our closest rivals – Gerard Houllier’s Liverpool. Win this and pretty much one more win would seal the deal. But we’d be up against a Red’s outfit fighting for the chance to play against Europe’s elite and up for it they were indeed.

Squad vs Liverpool (Away)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Duff, Said, Yepes, West, Dyer, Kerr, Bakircioglu, Shearer ©, Selakovic, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Robert (on 72), Solano (on 72), Barsom (on 45), Risp.

Okay… So that didn’t go to plan. Michael Owen scored twice and Igor Biscan got the third as Liverpool ran riot at Anfield. Shearer pulled one back from the spot but the whole team had underperformed. It was almost like they were already on the beach. Madeira was disgraceful and was hooked at half time after a well below par 4/10 game. Barsom didn’t do much better and the game ended in a humiliating defeat. The board were furious. This was Newcastle’s reputation on the line…!

Results elsewhere meant that Southampton, after their 3-2 loss to Chelsea, had been relegated with 4 games to go.

The battle to avoid relegation was getting fierce and Sunderland had almost certainly moved away from danger after a fantastic 2-0 victory over Everton at the Stadium of Plight. Steve Stone and Daniele Dichio getting the goals as the Mackems mathematically avoided relegation.

What followed was very odd, but all too familiar…. After their 2-0 WIN, Chairman Bob Murray had sensationally SACKED Peter Reid Monkey’s Heed. It was a very odd move, but then it dawned on me. Who are they playing next – NEWCASTLE.

See that’s how realistic CM 01/02 is, it’s even wise to the old enemy’s devious tricks. Sunderland have a knack of changing their manager just to get a little rise before the derby games. In reality, they’re so obsessed they don’t care how bad they perform all season as long as they beat their arch rivals. IRL, the mackems had sacked 5 managers on the eve of the Tyne-Wear derby to try and get a lift out of their Team. O’Neill, Di Canio, Poyet and Advocaat were all given the boot before the Newcastle match and it seemed even in 01/02, the chairman was sticking to the plan.

I’d spoken of the importance previous of this game. My teachers, my classmates… this game meant everything to both sets of supporters and to lose would be unthinkable. After the success I’d had in the last game it was the chance to do the first double over Sunderland in decades and I was bang up for the challenge. After the lacklustre performance against Liverpool, I made wholesale changes to the squad and brought in a few familiar faces. Anyone that had scored against the mackems previously – was in!

Squad vs Sunderland (Home)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Given, Dyer, Said, Yepes, West, Lee, Kerr, Solano, Speed, Shearer ©, Ameobi.

Subs: Chiotis, Barsom, Risp, Madeira, Bakircioglu (on 78).

I bloody went for it. The Mackem Slayer and Shearer up top. Speed, Lee and Solano in the middle and bringing in Shay Given for his first game in god knows how long.

What a performance it was too. Shearer getting us off to the perfect start, crashing home a header 17 minutes into the game. Ameobi was pulling the strings and was having a 9/10 MOM performance. We were cruising… that was, until the 77th minute when Kevin Phillips got an equaliser firmly against the run of play. Unbelievable. I reacted and switched up the tactics bringing on a Bakircioglu in behind the strikers in place of Kerr. It was an inspired move.

GOAL! BAKIRCIOGLU HAS SCORED !!!

90th minute and Kennedy pops up with the goods. A draw would have been okay, but a win had me ecstatic. That will do nicely…

So there we were. League Cup Winners, FA Cup Finalists, 3rd in the league and had beaten Sunderland twice. Could this season get any better? Next up was the FA Cup Final…

Toon in next week to find out

After the high of winning in the League Cup Semi-Final, TheMorty is brought back down to Earth with a bang – facing off against England’s toughest opponents in a tense battle for silverware

Performance-based incentives are the norm throughout life. It’s drilled into you since childhood. When you finished all your tea, you got a dessert. When you got a good report card at school, your parents bought you a toy. Tidy room? Go out and play… Extrinsic motivation is a big factor in life – and as a 30-something man who’d grown up on the parental reward scheme, I was no different. I’d just qualified for the League Cup Final in my first season as Newcastle United manager – I deserved a treat! So off I went shopping to spend my hard-earned cash, not on jewellery, cars or clothes. No, I was browsing for something much more valuable – I was in the market for a left back.

I’d been putting off the acquisition of a left-footed fullback for a while now, insisting I could get by playing square pegs in round holes. As much as the Speed/Bernard rotation was working, it wasn’t going to be good enough long term. Taribo West had been a fantastic signing, but he was making a habit of getting himself injured. I set out to find a long-term replacement that was under 21, had future potential but also hit the ground running and bolster my options.

My scouts came back with a couple of candidates close to home. Top of the pile was a player from across the tyne-wear divide, Julio Arca. A fantastic full-back that loved the North-East and after 150+ apps for Sunderland, would go on to play a similar amount of games for Middlesbrough and eventually find himself the captain of non-league northern outfit South Shields. His attacking and defensive stats were incredible and he fit the age requirement but sadly, there were two major obstacles standing in the way of his acquisition.

First, his nationality. My attacking options were already restricted thanks to the 3 non-EU player ruling, I had a Nigerian, an Egyptian and a Columbian making up three quarters of my defence – meaning poor old Costa Rican Ronald Gomez couldn’t even make the squad! Secondly, Sunderland would never sell in a million years.

Seldom does a player cross the rivalry-border. Sure, there’s been a few in the past, Paul Bracewell was went from Sunderland to Newcastle and back to Sunderland again and it was relatively low key, but when a bigger name makes the move like Jack Colback or Lee Clark, it stokes a fire that’s not easily extinguished. In the latter’s case, it had taken a club record fee to bring Clark to Wearside and after just two seasons he was dumped by the club – for the controversial act of appearing at Newcastle’s 1999 FA Cup final wearing a t-shirt emblazoned with a mocked up Newcastle logo saying “SMB – Sad Mackem B*stards”. It’s instances like this that instantly jack up the price of any player transferred between the clubs, so I’d be looking at a £15m+ price tag to sign Arca and, while he was good, he wasn’t THAT good.

The second name in the frame was Stephen Crainey, a Celtic youth team player with blistering pace and equally high defensive stats. He was available for £2m, I thought that would be the best option so proceeded to close the deal. A nice little reward ahead of the League Cup Final. Although the confirmation of my opponents soon turned my mood…

Manchester United. Are you kidding me? The team standing in my way of silverware were the only team to beat me twice. The current league champions that had an £80m war chest in the summer, spending £30m on Veron from Lazio and nearly £20 on Dutch International Ruud van Nistelrooy from PSV. In fact, those two players alone cost more than my entire squad!

Before I could even start thinking about Manchester United, I had the distraction of 4 domestic games against Boro, Bolton, Derby and Leicester. I decided to use these match-ups as a vehicle for change, to try new things in a relaxed environment. They were all beatable opponents and it was a good chance to try out formations and tactics ahead of the biggest showdown of my short CM 01/02 managerial career.

The first of my experiments was a CM classic; man-marking the keeper.

Squad vs Boro (Away)

Formation: 4-3-3

Starting 11: Chiotis, Duff, Risp, Yepes, Speed, Dyer, Kerr, Bakircioglu, Shearer ©, Gomez, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Barsom (on 88), Selakovic (on 74) Solano (on 88), Lee.

I brought in Ronald Gomez as a third striker to play alongside Shearer and Madeira and I set his individual status as Playmaker – meaning he’d get the ball more. I then proceeded to give him the defensive duty of man marking Mark Schwarzer – which meant he’d play very, very high up the pitch. The downside to this tactic is that you’ll see a lot of off-sides, but the plus is that he’ll get a truck load of chances.

The first half didn’t go quite as planned, with Mark Summerbell opening the scoring for the home side after just 17 minutes. However, we were soon level when Alan Shearer headed home in the 24th. It didn’t stop there for Shearer as he buried his (and our) second on the stroke of half time to send us in at the break with a slender advantage.

I was starting to doubt my tactics. Gomez was consistently offside and didn’t really seem to have many chances, but I was determined to give him 90mins and not panic by changing the tactics. My persistence paid off with the Costa Rican scoring a second-half brace, both 1-on-1s and neat finishes past the Aussie custodian.

4-1 flattered us and while Gomez had scored goals, I felt the number of off-sides caused by the individual tactic might cost us against better sides. That said, it was a successful experiment and we did get the win.

My next match welcomed Sam Allardyce’s Bolton Wanderers to Tyneside. Just before the game, we found out congratulations were in order. Kim Kallstrom had picked up the Young Player of the Month Award for February after some fantastic performances and important goals against Aston Villa, Everton and in the FA Cup against Leicester – although clearly the awards panel must have forgotten about his early bath in that one!

Kim made it two-in-two for Newcastle, after Mark Kerr had picked up the award for January.

Kallstrom’s reward for his personal accolade was a place on the bench as I tried yet again another tactic in preparation for Manchester United. This time it was a containment approach to the game, playing 2 defensive midfielders and just one striker. Goal-scoring Gomez retained his place in the side with Madeira making way for an extra midfielder.

Squad vs Bolton (Home)

Formation: 4-2-2-1-1

Starting 11: Chiotis, Duff, Risp, Yepes, Speed, Dyer, Kerr, Bakircioglu, Shearer ©, Gomez, Selakovic.

Subs: Given, Barsom, Madeira (on 68), Kallstrom (on 68), Lee.

The defensive approach didn’t seem to make much difference to how we played, controlling possession quite comfortably. We scored two goals in the first half, with Selakovic and then Kerr finishing smart moves to make it 2-0 to the Toon.

We had most of the possession but only 2 shots on target in the entire game and when Per Frandsen pulled one back in the 80th minute, there were fears we might throw the lead away. Fortunately for us, it ended there and we held on for all three points.

My two defensive midfielders, Dyer and Kerr had played very well – one picking up a goal and the other the MoM award. However, I still wasn’t convinced about this approach. Just two shots on target in the entire match wouldn’t cut it against a side that scored goals for fun. My next match was against basement side Derby County and I had to attack.

Squad vs Derby (Away)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Duff, Risp, Yepes, Speed, Dyer, Kerr, Bakircioglu, Shearer ©, Gomez, Selakovic.

Subs: Given, Barsom, Madeira (on 45), Kallstrom (on 69), Lee.

This wasn’t just another nothing Premier League game, this was an FA Cup Quarter Final. While I wanted to experiment, nothing was more important than victory. I reverted to the classic 4-1-3-2 for this one, but with an extra instruction for the team to attack.

First Gomez opened the scoring after 5 minutes then Shearer doubled the lead 26’ into the game. It was a stroll in the park for Newcastle as County rarely got out of their own half. Substitute Kim Kallstrom marked his brief appearance with a goal late on to confirm Newcastle’s status in the Semi-Final of the competition.

Results elsewhere had been fantastic, Blackburn, Reading/Everton and Arsenal were the remaining teams… A game against Reading or Everton would be preferred, but obviously, lady luck was not my friend…

I mean come on. Seriously. There’s two sides to this, positively if we were to win the Semi then it’s a very good draw in the final but conversely if we were to lose the Semi it would almost certainly hand Arsenal a domestic double – something we did in 1998 when they beat NUFC in the same competition. The semi was a way off and with a bird in the hand, I shouldn’t be worrying about another in the bush. There was now just one game between me and the League Cup final – Leicester Away.

Championship Manager does often throw up a little bit of comedy, so imagine my amusement when I got the following notification:

Okay, So I was due to play Arsenal on that day anyway… okay… now I feel a little bit better 😊

Squad vs Leicester (Away)

Formation: 4-4-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Duff, Risp, Yepes, West, Dyer, Kerr, Quaresma, Shearer ©, Solano, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Barsom, Gomez, Kallstrom (on 55), Lee.

It was the final game before the League Cup Final and I had one last trick I wanted to test. I opted for the traditional Mike Bassett formation of 4-4-2 with attacking wingers and fullbacks. Bringing in Quaresma on the right and Solano on the left to drive up and down the wings.

I must admit, it did not go to plan. Matty Elliott AGAIN scoring against me, making it 2-in-2 against my team. We were 1-0 down for 80 minutes, until we scored from an unlikely source – Mike Duff grabbing a late equaliser to give us a share of the spoils.

My experiments had worked so far, giving us 7 points from a possible 9 and steering us into the Semi’s of yet another cup but, the time for experimenting was over. The main event was here.

As I prepared for the game, I had a notification that the transfer window was closing. It had been a relatively good window and while I hadn’t managed to shift all the deadwood from the previous regime, I had managed to recoup quite a lot of money…

My OUTs had seen 11 players depart for a combined total of £21m. Elena Marcelino and Christian Bassedas bringing in more than half of that amount with their slightly inflated transfer fees.

The INs had been equally impressive, 17 players joining for a total of £22.5m, defensive gladiator “Super” Mario Yepes being my most expensive signing and eclipsing the £3m I’d paid for Frederik Risp.

With a net spend of just £1.5m, I was delighted with my first transfer window in charge of the club and still had a significant amount in the kitty for a marquee summer signing.

THE LEAGUE CUP FINAL

Newcastle United vs Manchester United.

Sunday 31st March 2002.

It was time, my first cup final in charge of Newcastle United. 33 years of trophy-less hurt could all be ended on this day, if David could only beat Goliath.

I was taking this seriously, so seriously that I went upstairs and got changed into my suit. Including my lucky black and white striped tie, fit for the occasion. I came down and played the national anthem as I put a hand on my heart and belted out the lyrics like Psycho Stuey Pearce at Euro ’96. The team news was in:

Starting XI

GK – Dionisis Chiotis

RB – Mike Duff
LB – Taribo West

CB – Ibrahim Said

CB – Mario Yepes

DM – Kieron Dyer

CM – Mark Kerr

CM – Kim Kallstrom

CM – Stefan Selakovic

CF – Tó Madeira

CF – Alan Shearer ©

Subs

Shay Given (GK)

Kennedy Bakircioglu

Frederik Risp

Stephen Crainey

Abgar Barsom

All my preparation for this game had been on trying new things, in the event that the game could change. I wanted to be prepared for every eventuality and have plans B, C and D in my back bag. I started with the 4-1-3-2 formation that had worked so well in the past, but with the added instruction of a defensive approach.

The game kicked off and within 8 minutes of play, it wasn’t the start I’d dreamed of….

GOAL! VAN NILSTELROOY SCORES!

Goddamn it. My head was in my hands as I’d seen this twice before. The Man Utd man was a thorn in our side again and proved himself just too good. We couldn’t get anywhere near him as he turned and shot low from inside the box to give his side the advantage in Cardiff. I was deflated as my whole game plan was out the window. What do I do now? Attack and risk conceding again? Go defensive and try and get to half-time just a goal down? Or do I keep things as they are and hope for the best? I opted for the latter, not panicking, making no changes and hoping we could claw it back. Soon, everything changed.

In the 34th minute Manchester United had a corner, David Beckham stepped up and drifted it in but Yepes was on hand to clear the ball. It landed at the feet of Shearer on the half-way line. Big Al, jinked past Ronny Johnsen when the Norwegian defender tripped him. Since he was the last defender, referee Paul Taylor had no choice but to send him off!

RED CARD – RONNY JOHNSEN!

I could just imagine it, Roy Keane going absolutely mad and screaming in the face of the official as Johnsen left the field in tears for an early bath. This was it, my lucky break. Dwight Yorke made way for Phil Neville as Alex Ferguson changed to a 4-4-1 formation and this was it, the cup final catalyst – no more Mr. Cautious.

I changed my focus to Attack.

GOAL! KALLSTROM SCORES!

44 minutes played and we were level. The balance had shifted and we had the ascendency. It was frustrating that the goal came just before half time, I didn’t want the half to end. We’d come close twice previously before Kallstrom finished a nice move, assisted by Madeira who’d pulled wide and crossed for the on-coming Swede to steer home from 12 yards.

HALF TIME

I took the lads to one side and fired a cliché-laden speech their way. “This was it, it was our time, just one more goal standing in the way of greatness”. I mean despite this being just the ramblings of a gamer on his laptop, it was kind of true…. virtually at least. Newcastle hadn’t won a trophy in 33 years and had never won the League Cup trophy in their entire 100+ year history. We had a man advantage for 45 minutes… all we had to do is score.

The break had been welcome for Manchester United and, after taking the 15 minute break to regroup, they came out all guns blazing. Van Nistelrooy had two goals ruled out for offside… we were up against it. I don’t even know how this was happening, we had an extra man – how were under the cosh?

82 minutes were on the clock and I thought back to the warm-up games against Boro and Bolton. It was my plan B, C and D all combined. I had to roll the dice in a last-ditch effort to break the deadlock.

Madeira and Selakovic made way for Bakircioglu and Risp. Against Bolton I’d contained the ball successfully playing 4-2-2-1-1. I tried the same thing bringing on Risp at the back and pushing Said into defensive midfield to hold the ball. Up front, I left Shearer on his own and gave him the individual instruction of man marking Edwin van der Sar. It was a risky move, but with a strategically placed midfield behind him, the offsides might not be much of an issue and using someone as clinical as Alan, all he needed was one chance and I knew he’d score.

As the clock ticked toward extra time I could feel my tactics change was working, Manchester were losing the battle of the United’s as Newcastle turned the screw. The last 5-minute possession bar was all black, we were going at them and with just 3 minutes left – the game was won.

GOAL! SHEARER HAS SCORED !!!

Arise Sir Alan Shearer. The man to finally bring silverware back to St. James. 87 minutes of the game had been played when Kallstrom knocked the ball upfield to Bakircioglu. Kennedy pulled wide, beat Phil Neville and squared the ball across the box where Alan was on hand to smash the ball home from 6 yards. Right-hand raised (both Alan on the pitch and I in the lounge) racing away in jubilation.

The screen flashed

“THEY’VE DONE IT.”

“Newcastle United Have Won the League Cup.”

March had ended, we’d won our first piece of silverware and, no matter what would happen, the playthrough had been a success. However, I wasn’t done there. I wanted to end the season with as many points as possible but, more importantly, I wanted to win the FA Cup.

While I was happy with winning the League Cup, something didn’t sit right with me. I won because Man Utd got a red card. I felt like I still had something to prove and the FA Cup was my only chance to prove it.

Could I do it? Win Newcastle’s second trophy of the season and become the first manager in the history of the football club to do so? It was all down to one game and against one team, the league’s best. Arsenal…

…Toon in next week to find out

After the excitement of Christmas, TheMorty was about to enter the most boring part of the season. Could he keep his head and reach their first League Cup Final since 1976?

2002 was a World Cup year and, with the finals in Japan & South Korea fast approaching, many European nations had decided to have a winter break in a bid to keep players fresh for the quadrennial summer showpiece. While the FA and the Premier League had opted out of this, I decided to impose my own hiatus from the game. It was starting to take over my life. I was finding myself scouting players at work, checking out their real-life history over the last 15 years and finding out how their careers had progressed. I met up with FBT for a beer and for almost a whole hour talked exclusively about my dismay that David Blunkett had blocked my work permit for Maxim Tsigalko. I needed my winter break, but more so, I needed my CM 01/02 break.

Alas, I took it. A whole week away from the game. The first few hours were easy, but after a couple days of the cold turkey treatment, I found myself craving a match. Seldom has there been a game that’s had this level of addictive-ness but I knew if I didn’t give myself a break soon, I’d become a danger to my saved game – I’d end up over thinking match-ups and over complicating tactics.

My FA Cup success against West Ham had been rewarded with a winnable 4th round game against Crewe (result!) and I also had the small matter of a League Cup Semi to prepare for. The road to Cardiff was long (316miles to be exact) and I felt the best way to prepare was to come back a week later, fresh and ready for an epic 2-legged battle. Standing in my way were Tottenham Hotspur.. Two very beatable opponents and the latter was a chance for a trip to Cardiff and be a game away from lifting the League Cup for the first time in Newcastle’s illustrious history.

However, before I could get to my Part 4 showpiece and learn my cup final fate, I had the small matter of the Premier League to contend with. As the reigning Manager of the Month, I could imagine all eyes would be on my Newcastle United team. Especially Alex Ferguson’s, as his Red Devils team made their way to Tyneside looking to do the double over the Geordies and inflict my first defeat since November.

Squad vs Man Utd (Home)

Formation: 4-2-2-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Dyer, Said, Yepes, Bernard, Lee, Kerr, Bakircioglu, Shearer ©, Selakovic, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Barsom (on 83), Risp, Kallstrom (on 83), Queresma.

I approached the game cautiously – lining up with 2 Defensive Mids in Kerr and Lee, with Dyer moving over to Right Back in place of the injured Duff. Olivier Bernard came into the starting line-up in place of Gary Speed to add a little more pace to the left-hand side and try to stop the in-form David Beckham. That didn’t exactly go to plan… David ending the match the highest rated player on the pitch!

I know what you’re thinking, how the hell was he the highest rated player and NOT get the Man of the Match award? Well, that’s CM for you! Randomly, the game would glitch from time to time denied sarong wearing metrosexuals their star award. Instead, goal machine Ruud van Nistelrooy collected it for scoring a first half brace – despite having quite the modest 8-rated game. Alan Shearer did manage to pull one back late on, but it proved little more than a consolation as Manchester deservedly ran out 2-1 winners.

In previous games I’d been battered by the top sides, but there were positives to take from this encounter. I’d matched Man Utd in almost every category, they’d only been superior in tackles and headers. I decided to change my tactics and push tackling from “Normal” to “Hard” to see if it made a difference.

While defensively we’d been poor, our attack had been outstanding. Against one of the leagues best defences we’d had 9 shots on target – with 7 of those coming from Madeira. Despite not scoring, a leading Journalist asked me about our pal after the game – fishing for a comment on whether I’d describe him as a “goal machine”… Naturally, I obliged…

Manchester United had inflicted my first defeat in over 2 months and the title was out of reach. I was entering a very boring point of the season where most league games almost didn’t matter. I needed to get back on the horse and bounce back in the best way possible to renew my love of the league and there was no better way to do that than with a convincing win against the Cottagers.

Squad vs Fulham (Home)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Dyer, Risp, Yepes, Speed, Selakovic, Kerr, Kallstrom, Shearer ©, Bakircioglu, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Quaresma (on 70), Solano (on 70), Barsom (on 70), Lee.

It didn’t look like it was going to be my day when former Mag Louis Saha struck 30 minutes into the game to break the deadlock. What is it about players scoring against their former clubs? It’s almost an unwritten rule of the sport. Just as I started to regret coming back to this play-through, my luck shifted just moments later when Steed Malbranque pulled up injured and had to be replaced. Already missing one of their best players, Fulham soon lost two more. Madeira was through on goal and fouled by van der Sar. The referee pointed to the spot and gave Edwin his marching orders. The penalty decision was great, but the red card to the Dutch ‘keeper meant Fulham had to bring on a replacement and bizarrely it was Saha that made way for substitute Maik Taylor. So we already had a man advantage but Fulham had lost their best keeper, best striker and best midfielder in the space of 10 first half minutes, surely there was no stopping us from getting the three points now?

Shearer converted and we went in at half time 1-1. I gave the lads the obligatory pep-talk in my head and out we went for what proved to be a riot of a second half.

First Kerr bagged a screamer from distance before Kim Kallstrom slotted home from close range to make it 3-1. Bakircioglu made it 4 before Kerr sealed the win with aplomb, lobbing Taylor from the edge of the box. What a win.

I was starting to fall in love with this play-through again and while I was bored with the monotony of the Premier League games, i was given respite with the FA Cup. After the fantastic victory against West Ham in the third round, we were given a favourable draw against Crewe. They had a decent squad, peaking with wanted man and teen prodigy Dean Ashton up front, but I wanted to give myself a challenge and opted for a mix of youth and experience to give the senior lads a well-deserved rest.

Squad vs Crewe Alexandra (Home)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Pinheiro, Gavilan, O’Brien, Risp, Bernard, Robert, Solano, Quaresma, Lee ©, Ameobi, Barsom.

Subs: Paiva (on 77), Gomez, Kallstrom (on 64), Bellamy (on 77), Speed.

What did I do…!? 0-2 down within 30 minutes at St James’ Park to side two divisions below us! I had such an easy draw and I was on the verge of mucking it up. Ashton getting the first with his head on the 14-minute mark and then defender Jason Gavin getting the second 10 minutes later. I had to do something, so I went 4-4-2. We slowly started winning the possession and as Crewe sat off trying to defend their lead we started turning the screw. We pulled one back on the stroke of half-time, Barsom reducing the arrears just before the midway whistle. We weren’t there yet though – there was still a long way to go.

We came close a few times but I had a genuine fear my 01/02 side would be the latest in a long line of Newcastle “giant killings”, adding Crewe to the embarrassments at Hereford and Stevenage. 15 minutes to go and I’d made a couple of changes, Paiva, Bellamy and Kallstrom coming on to try and bolster the attack. 10 minutes to go and my blushes were spared. Not by a striker, but by an unlikely goal hero…

Last season, in 2001, Newcastle had been 0-1 down to bitter rivals Sunderland after a goal from French right back Patrice Carteron. There were only 12 minutes left of the game when none other than Andy O’Brien popped up with an equaliser to send the away crowd into madness at the Stadium of (P)light.

It spawned a chant still bellowed on the terraces to this day and I had the pleasure of repeating it not once, but TWICE as first O’Brien headed home a fantastic equaliser on the 80th minute and then scored AGAIN nodding in an incredible WINNER in the 90th.

“…Who put the ball in The Alex net? O’BRIEN, O’BRIEN”

I bloody love that man!

My gamble had paid off. Sure, my blood pressure was through the roof and I was a sweaty mess, but I was into the next round of the FA Cup! There’d been a couple of upsets in the round to thin out the competition – most notably Middlesbrough being dumped out 4-1 away to Barnsley. Our reward for the last minute win was a trip to Leicester, who had breezed past Grimsby 2-0.

With one cup out of the way, it was time to focus on another. Game 1 of the two legged tie against Spurs for a place in the League cup final. This was what I’d gotten back into the game for. I just couldn’t wait…

Squad vs Spurs (Home)

Formation: 5-2-1-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Risp, Said, Yepes, Speed, Kerr, Bakircioglu, Shearer ©, Dyer, Kallstrom, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Barsom (on 82), Gomez (on 82), Solano (on 82), Lee.

I approached the game cautiously with a defence-minded 5-2-1-2 formation employing 3 centre-backs to try and stop the inform Sergei Rebrov, however, in reality the game was a bit of an anti-climax.

We eased to a 2-0 victory courtesy of a To Madeira strike and a Gus Poyet own goal. We dominated possession and we never looked like conceding. All a bit disappointing really…

As January ended, there was a nice surprise for my pal Mark Kerr, who walked away with the Young Player of the Month award. Hopefully this would prove the first of many pieces of silverware for the Scotsman…

Squad vs Everton (Away)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Risp, Said, Yepes, Speed, Dyer, Kerr, Kallstrom, Shearer ©, Bakircioglu, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Barsom (on 87), Gomez (on 87), Solano (on 82), Lee.

My defeat to Manchester United had seen them leapfrog me into 2nd and my side were down to 3rd in the table. After this Everton result, I was beginning to realise I wouldn’t catch them.

It all looked great when Alan Stubbs was sent off in the 7th minute for a reckless foul and Kim Kallstrom scored from the resulting free-kick. We had 82 minutes to play with a man advantage… easy, you’d think… right?

Nope. What was I saying earlier about players scoring against their former clubs? Big Duncan Ferguson popped up with a goal in the 50th minute to equalise and dash our hopes. There was a hint of offside, but I wasn’t going to argue with him. After all, this is a man that once came home to find two burglars in his home and battered them both. This was a man who spent 3 months in jail after headbutting a player on the pitch while playing for Rangers. I figured best let him have this one…

A disappointing draw and, sadly, one soon repeated…

Squad vs Aston Villa (Away)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Dyer, Said, Yepes, Bernard, Lee, Kerr, Selakovic, Shearer ©, Bakircioglu, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Kallstrom (on 83), Gomez, Risp (on 60), Quaresma.

My team was behind twice away from home and were lucky to rescue a draw after Villa had taken the lead through Bosko Balaban and again through Mustafa Hadji. They were playing us off the park and both Kallstrom and Kerr’s equalisers had come firmly against the run of play.

Any hope of catching Arsenal was well and truly over. Man Utd had pulled away and now it looked like I was in a race with Liverpool and Chelsea for third place. The Chairman’s goal of Champions League football was still alive but I had to step it up a gear and quickly…

I had a look at my squad to see what I could do. Who was under-performing in the first team and who are the in-form fresh faces I can I bring in from the stiffs to bolster the starting XI. As I checked out the form on my squad page, I noticed that Robert Lee was unhappy. He was out of contract in the summer and wanted a new deal. The problem I had was, his expectations for this deal were as a player/coach and his coaching stats were awful. Rob was a fantastic player and a wonderful servant to the club in his time at the Toon, but there’s a reason he didn’t get in to management and now presents podcasts – I wasn’t about to change that trend!

As I looked at how he compared to some of my other coaches, it did highlight one thing to me; my coaching staff was thin. I now had a lot of youth players and while my coaches were decent there wasn’t enough of them to help this team reach it’s potential. I started looking around at possibilities to fill a position.

I wanted a former player with a recognisable name. Someone who had international experience with minimum stats as 15/20 for coaching youngsters. Two former players sprung to mind. One a Geordie, the other a legend…

“Pelanty” taker and mullet-man Chris Waddle had just announced his retirement from playing after an illustrious career ended down at non-league side Worksop Town. His non-playing stats looked decent so I decided to chance my arm and offer him a contract with his hometown club. The other coach I had my eye on was a bit more special… England luminary and current CM 01/02 Watford Coach Ray Wilkins.

Ray’s stats were fantastic and he was interested to come. I was ready to make him part of the backroom staff but decided not to pursue his signature. Sadly, Ray passed away in real life during my playthrough. It’s always horrible when someone so influential in the sport passes. You feel like you’ve lost a chunk of your childhood – particularly when they’re an international great from your lifetime. Everyone talked about Ray as an incredible playmaker and he was probably the one player I could do with in my team – a prime Ray Wilkins would leave Mark Kerr firmly in the reserves. From what I read in his various tributes and obituaries, he was fantastic and wonderful man. After news of his Death broke, a few of my players (IRL) had some lovely things to say about him:

Alan Shearer: “He lived for and loved football. I was lucky enough to have worked with him and he was always a true gentleman. He will be sorely missed by so many.”

Robert Lee: “RIP Ray Wilkins, a true LEGEND!”

Craig Bellamy: “His view on the game was outstanding… football has lost a true football man”

Back in the game, I thought long and hard about offering him a contract offer. A big part of playing legacy Champ Man titles was bringing adoration or grudges from the game back out into the real world. I didn’t want that with Ray and decided to let him rest, stay at Watford and flourish in his career. His stats were far too good to remain a coach for long and I’d look forward to battling against him on the touchline soon. RIP Ray.

With My coaching situation almost resolved, it was time to turn my attention back to the Premier League and the visit of Southampton and I finally got that long awaited victory…

Squad vs Soton (Home)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Duff, Risp, Yepes, Speed, Kerr, Kallstrom, Dyer, Shearer ©, Bakircioglu, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Gomez, Solano, Barsom (on 85), Selakovic (on 85).

It was 1-1 with 6 minutes left to play when Alan Shearer netted against his former side. “Goal Machine” Madeira had given us the lead before substitute Adrian Cacares had brought the Saints level. Shearer’s blistering strike from range was just what the doctor ordered and stopped a rot which was threatening my chances of a European place…

Back to winning ways, now it was time to really make it count and try to beat 4th placed Liverpool in what would prove to be a 6-pointer of a game.

Squad vs Liverpool (Home)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Dyer, Said, Yepes, Bernard, Lee, Kerr, Selakovic, Shearer ©, Bakircioglu, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Kallstrom (on 83), Gomez, Risp (on 60), Quaresma.

In CM 01/02 Liverpool were incredible. They’d just come off the back of a treble-winning season and current England star Michael Owen was in red hot form, netting 5 goals in his last 3 appearances. Fortunately, it was a former England star that stole the headlines…

Alan Shearer netted AGAIN. Scoring his 8th Goal in as many games with a fine header from a Bakircioglu corner . His strike giving us a healthy 7-point cushion in third place and with Leicester away next in the cup… the dismay of the draws and defeat were behind us. Things were starting to look up again in the battle for both Silverware and that coveted European spot.

Taking a break from the league, my mags travelled to City’s former home ground of Filbert Street looking to advance to an FA Cup Quarter.

Squad vs Leicester (Away)

Formation: 4-1-3-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Dyer, Said, Yepes, Bernard, Lee, Kerr, Kallstrom, Shearer ©, Bakircioglu, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Selakovic (on 89), Risp (on 82), Barsom, Speed.

Leicester away was an uneventful tie until a second half, 17 minute spell got hearts racing. The scores were level at 1-1 when Kim Kallstrom came up with a moment of genius followed by a moment of madness. He scored a fantastic solo effort before losing his cool, seeing red and being sent to the stands!

The goal read like a thing of beauty, Kim beating three players before rounding the keeper and slotting home to give Newcastle the lead but he soon turned from hero to zero when he executed a stupid, two-footed lunge and gave referee Roy Pearson little choice but to show the Swede to the stands.

Reckless yes, but did we care? No. We were into the hat for the next round and the draw was very kind…

With Man Utd, Arsenal, Liverpool, Blackburn and Everton still in the competition, we were gifted Walsall or Derby. Surely a very winnable QF match!

The cups were the heartbeat of my play-through and I really felt like the Premier League had become a lull. Before my eagerly anticipated League Cup game against Spurs, I had an uninspiring midweek trip to the valley – as Wednesday’s game against Charlton proved little more than a warm up for the main event.

Squad vs Charlton (Away)

Formation: 4-3-2-1

Starting 11: Chiotis, Dyer, Risp, Yepes, Speed, Kerr, Kallstrom, Selakovic, Shearer ©, Bakircioglu, Madeira.

Subs: Given, Lee (on 89), Solano (on 89), Barsom (on 89), Quaresma.

As all eyes were on the Second leg of Spurs, I decided to attack and make my DM and AM in a 4-3-2-1 formation. I wanted to do something to get the fans excited ahead of the chance to win the first piece of silverware in 33 long, insufferable years. We certainly delivered on that promise, Yepes, Shearer and Madeira scoring magnificent the goals in a 3-1 win.

Now that was over, it was onto the match we’d all been waiting for. Newcastle had a decent history of getting to cup finals, finishing runners up in the FA Cup in both ’98 and in ’99 and it was the latter cup run that here springs to memory. That day our opponents were none other than… you guessed it… Tottenham Hotspur.

At a sold out Old Trafford, backed by 27,000 Geordies, Newcastle progressed to the final courtesy of an extra-time brace from Alan Shearer – one from the spot and one in-off the bar from 25-yards. However, real life history wasn’t my friend in this game. Particularly not where Tottenham Hotspur were concerned. The 2001/2002 League Cup Semi saw Spurs end their 27-game winless run against Chelsea end in style. Smashing the blues and their hoodoo in a magnificent 6-3 aggregate victory. One way or the other, History would repeat itself. Either Newcastle or Spurs would be in the final at the expense of the other and for my own sanity, I was desperate for that team to be mine.

With the premier league fixtures done and a first leg advantage of 2 goals. I was knocking on the door of that first League Cup final in 25 years and all I had to do was not concede 3. Surely even my boys could manage that…. Right?

Oh how wrong could I be…

Squad vs Spurs (Away)

Formation: 4-2-2-2

Starting 11: Chiotis, Duff, Risp, Yepes, Speed, Robert, Selakovic, Lee ©, Solano, Gomez, Barsom.

Subs: Given, Shearer, Madeira (on 57), Kerr (on 57), Dyer (on 57).

I should have learned my lesson. I got cock-sure just like I did against Crewe and rested some players. Gomez and Barsom came in for Shearer and Madeira. First blood was well and truly to the home side…

GOAL! TEDDY SHERINGHAM SCORES.

It was 1-2 on aggregate and I had lost that cushion. My players were rocked and my fans were nervous. We didn’t have the best of records in London – not winning in 29 games before this season had started. I was beginning to get nervous.

GOAL! MATTHEW ETHERINGTON SCORES.

Nerves soon turned to blind panic. It was now 2-2 on aggregate and we were back to square one. I had to do something, I’d come too far to lose this for both me and for the fans. I switched back to 4-1-3-2 and brought on Kerr and To Madeira. Surely we can get one goal… surely… just then, I see the words flashing…. GOAL!

…RONALD GOMEZ SCORES.

Oh thank god. I can breathe. I’ve got the goal to push me in front and now I can relax and take it ea.….

GOAL! JONATHAN BLACK SCORES!

Oh FFS. Seriously? I’ve never even heard of him! It was now 3-3 and there was only 11 minutes to go when FINALLY. We got that lucky break

GOAL! RONALD GOMEZ SCORES!

My heart was pounding as the clock counted down and finally, with 90+2 on the watch, the referee blew the final Whistle. Thank God for that…

The game ended and we were into the final, the fans were jubilant, the board delighted and we were finally within touching distance of a trophy. I’d had a week off and fallen in love with the game all over again. I couldn’t wait to get to the final and give it my all to lift the trophy.

There was just one thing left to question, who would I be playing. I checked out the other Semi-Final eager to see my opponent. Who would stand in my way of success…?

Imagine my utter dismay when I saw the words: Manchester United. *face palm*

With one Cup Final already secured, could I make it two and progress through the Quarter and Semi Final of the FA Cup? or would that dream die? Toon in next week…