Ever wondered how good that 2007 Argyle team could have got? I still remember my teenage heart breaking as we narrowly lost to Watford in the FA Cup and saw the subsequent dismantling of one of our best ever sides. And who knows, maybe with the right backing, Holloway could have guided us to the Premier League instead of Blackpool.
With the days merging into one and football’s future still up in the air due to the coronavirus outbreak. it’s time to heat up the time machine and step back into a world long since passed. A world where the closest thing to a city on lockdown was when Blue released Fly By in 2002. A time when Donald Trump was just an orange Alan Sugar on The Apprentice USA, MySpace was the king of social networks and 2020 sounded so futuristic.
So prepare for a wave of nostalgia, names you thought you would never hear again and the final years of baggy football shirts as we load of a 2006/07 database for Football Manager 2020.
Buzsacky, Norris, Nalis, Halmosi, Hayles & co, let’s re-write history.
I have been sent back in time from the future, for one job and one job only.
Get this team in the Premier League.
And what a team it is.
It appears to have been a little cramped in the Delorean, as I emerge like Marty McFly with Simon Halllett and several members of the current staff.
But just to prove it is 2006..
Now let’s see what the squad looks like.
A 22-year-old McCormick, already established in the team at this point too.
He’s French, he’s great.
They called him Shelley and I can’t remember for the life of me why, its Paul Connolly.
I don’t have much to say about Barness, I just read that he was released in Jan 2007 by Holloway.
The first of the magic 3 Hungarians.
Full disclaimer; Timar and Halmosi were not in the database and I have added them myself. Let me know if I was accurate or overestimated their ability.
The versatile and pacy french defender Mathias Doumbe.
Huge chance to change Marcel Seip’s Argyle career and not end up scoring against us on-loan. A good ball-playing defender.
Versatile Hasney Aljofree, who is already getting offers from Scottish sides but is very much needed as we don’t have great depth at left back…in fact he is actually our best left back.
Paul Wotton in his prime. Going to be fun for sure. Those set pieces and long shots. Oh boy.
Some interesting stats in there for Lee Hodges, should be of use to us at some point, although his best days are behind him. Key player in those title winning teams.
Competent playing down that whole left side, Tony Capaldi. I expected him to be a little better in this, but maybe that was just my green-tinted glasses.
Lilian Nalis, hell yeah. At 34, we have limited time with before his legs completely go, so let us savour it one more time.
I will not let Akos play in the Premier League without us. The star man.
I signed Sinclair on loan, but he doesn’t look amazing. Those goals he scored for us deserve a better dribbling rating of 10.
Playing more centrally these days, 18 work rate. What more can you say? You aren’t leaving Home Park with me in charge Chuck.
Never really went as well as people had hoped for Bojan, but this is what this series is all about. Changing history.
His time at Argyle was short but sweet, but now I’m in control Peter Halmosi is taking us up.
Chadwick actually looks pretty good.
Interesting to see if Ebanks-Blake can emulate his real-life form from those two years. All these stats are taken from the 2006 version of the game so the world had yet to see what this boy would do in green.
And then there is Barry, looking like our starting striker at this rate.
The youth teams are full of some interesting name, such as a 16-year-old Ashley Barnes which is entirely historically inaccurate. Reuben Reid is very highly rated.
The database only includes the top European leagues and the Championship, but Leagues 1 & 2 do have a few players scattered around. Ryan Lowe is 27 and at Crewe, and honestly, I might sign him, he’s not amazing though.
I found a confused Rory Fallon wandering the Barbican, he seems to have been sent back in time too. I give him the honour of being my Assistant Manager.
Bids already coming in but I plan to sell no one. Well, for now at least.
This is what happens when the lower league teams don’t have any real players. But that will sort itself out over the next couple years.
It’s just fun to see Halmosi & co playing in green again.
First piece of history officially changed as Paul Connolly signs a new contract.
lol
Take a close look at some of those names in the Premier League. Hopefully, we will be lining up against them soon.
But it’s the Championship we have to deal with first.
In comes Paul Gallagher on loan. He fills the void on the right wing that would have seen Cherno Samba start if we didn’t make signings. No offence, Cherno.
Would break my heart if Larrieu pushed for a move away. Sunderland are also sniffing around.
For the nostalgia.
He’s not apart of the 2006 database. He’s actually meant to be 45 right now, but that was probably how old he was back then too.
Is it worth it?
And before the season even begins, Gallagher is out for 3 months.
I just want to see how this team plays for real, so lets get straight into the first game! Ignore the 2019 timestamp, that’s just a glitch in the matrix.
A Nalis – Norris – Buzsacky midfield three is perfection as we kick off the season away to Coventry.
In 2006 we won this fixture 1-0 with a Samba header. Samba starts for me on the bench.
What a start. Halmosi with his first assist of the season from a wide free-kick on 5 mins that finds the head of Doumbe in a Cherno Samba-ish fashion, 1-0. 20 minutes later Ebanks-Blake steps up to score a penalty and we see out the rest of the game.
Premier League here we come.
Doumbe lines up along a 17 year old Gareth Bale in the team of the week. This is great.
A preview of what’s to come.
Look out for part two coming soon because I have been furloughed so what else is there to do?