VyKing

Intro Jay Hallam stood at the edge of the touchline, the sea air rolling in from the nearby coast, carrying with it the scent of salt and the distant cries of gulls. He was a long way from Sheffield. The steel city had shaped him, hardened him, but here, at the heart of Worthing FC, everything felt different—lighter, yet impossibly heavy. His boots sank slightly into the damp turf as he surveyed the scene before him. The squad trained in short bursts, sharp movements against the grey of the evening sky. He knew their names now, knew their stats and strengths, but they were still strangers in practice. It was one thing to pore over match footage and formations late into the night; it was another to command respect on this modest pitch, miles from the grandeur of football’s elite. At thirty-nine, Hallam had lived and breathed the game—but always from the sidelines. A talented midfielder in his youth, he had once dreamed of playing at Hillsborough, pulling the strings for his boyhood club, Sheffield Wednesday. But football had never promised fairness, and by the time he reached his mid-twenties, a torn ACL had stripped him of the career he had envisioned. Rather than drift into bitterness, Hallam rebuilt himself in the background of the sport. He earned his coaching badges, studied the tactical innovations of the game, and built a reputation as a keen analyst. Clubs in the lower leagues sought him out for opposition scouting, tapping into his meticulous eye for detail. He wasn’t a name, wasn’t a flashy ex-pro with international caps—but those who worked with him knew he understood football on a deeper level. Still, understanding the game and leading men through it were two very different challenges. Worthing wasn’t a glamour move. It was a risk, a leap, a test. The Vanarama South was unforgiving, demanding grit and adaptability. He knew that. And still, here he stood. He inhaled deeply, pulled his jacket tighter against the breeze, and took his first steps onto the training pitch. This was his club now. His players. His responsibility. And no spreadsheet could prepare him for that.

Update on this, 10 years trying to get the AFC CL winning everything in each league I managed including the K-League in Korea my passion for the save and the challenge died. It's a very difficult save if you don't have access to Saudi to get this one over the line. so this was a fail. Many trophies though

September '31 September saw us crowned Chinese Super League champions after an 11-0 win over Guangzhou, who we were 8-0 up against by half time. It was also the month that saw us lose our number one and China's number one to injury for 8 weeks. We are still on course for the invisibles with 4 games remaining, but the Champions League is our number 1 priority right now.

August '31 August was a tricky month even if it doesn't look like it, the first loss of the season coming in the quarter finals of the FA Cup. But we did qualify for the Group stage of the Champions League. Estevao doing exactly what I brought him in for and being very creative behind the strikers with 7 G/A in 7 games. Senic with 8 G/A in 8 games and Sakai with 4 G/A in 6. Champions League football is in the bag for next seeason, 7 games to go the league is pretty much tied up.

July '31 Another month and more wins to strengthen the position at the top, 1st August is upon us and our summer transfers are about to join up with the squad. 1 thing that did stand out is that the Preliminary round of the Champions League is 1 leg so we need to go into that game full strength as Melbourne City aren't an easy team. We also have the Chinese FA super cup Quarter Final in August.

June '31 The only team to match me so far being 2nd placed Changcun Yatai with a hard thought 2-2, Fast approaching the first Prelimenary round for the AFC Champions League vs Melbourne City.

May '31 Another month another 100% record with a gap growing at the top of the table. June see's some tough games coming up. We have 5 maybe 6 signings coming in 1st August to help strengthen the team lets look at the 5 confirmed 1. Estevao - 3.6M. Didn't work out at Chelsea and he found his way back to Brazil. This is a player I believe still has talent and has age on his side at only 24. 2. Ante Senic. 2.4 Mill a 20 year old Croatian striker to replace Ivan who is leaving in July for 11mill. Very promising forward with the attributes to be an instant impact. 3. Ryosuke Sakai. 4.2M another striker that can play in behind the strikers 21 years old coming in from Kyoto Sanga. 4. Ruan Zhizhong. 1.8mill from Changchun Yatai a left back of Chinese nationality to help with the home grown quota. Instant starter to help with the Champions League. 5. Zhang Mingtao. 2.5M one for the future 19yr old China u21 centre back. coming from Beiging Guoan.

April '31 A strong start to the campaign conceding 1 goal the entire month. Work is underway to bring in players in the summer window and to remove players too.

Can we just delete sheff utd and pretend they don't exist? Asking for a friend..... Brilliant work on these Derek

Pre-Season 2031 Going into the season as favourites for the league title with the signings made taken into account, This instantly puts the pressure on to succeed from the off. Instantly decided DM was a position that needed strengthening so straight to Antlers to bring in Hori, then to River Plate to reunite with Lujan. This was a no brainer my next target is to remove the FGN players that are already in the team and replace with younger players from other countries and hopefully young Chinese players from the academy or around the league. This means spending the 100mill we have in the summer window to strengthen ourselves for the Champions League. The goal this season is be competitive in the champions league.

Shanghai Port Football Club (Chinese: 上海海港足球俱乐部; pinyin: Shànghǎi Hǎigǎng Zúqiú Jùlèbù), previously Shanghai SIPG (Chinese: 上海上港; pinyin: Shànghǎi Shànggǎng), is a Chinese professional football club based in Shanghai, that competes in the Chinese Super League, the top tier of Chinese football. Shanghai Port plays its home matches at the Pudong Football Stadium, located within Pudong. Their owners are the Chinese group Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG). The club was founded on 25 December 2005 as Shanghai East Asia Football Club by former Chinese international footballer Xu Genbao. The club used graduates from the Genbao Football Base, a football academy also founded by Xu, to form their first team as they made their debut in the third tier of China's football league pyramid in the 2006 league season. They made it to the top tier and finished as league champions for the first time in the 2018 Chinese Super League season, before winning two more consecutive titles in 2023 and 2024. According to a Forbes report from 2015, Shanghai Port was the third-most valuable football club in China, with a club value of $159 million and an estimated revenue of $37 million.[2] According to the annual report of the parent company, the club had a revenue of CN¥565.7 million in 2015, as well as a net loss of CN¥41.5 million, total assets of CN¥286.8 million, and net assets of CN¥59.7 million.[3]

December '30 We needed 2 big results and we failed to keep hold of a lead vs Ulsan that see's us finish 2nd but it wasn't enough to qualify for the next round. Which leaves 2 options. Take charge of a team that does progress if a role comes up or we carry on with Antlers and try again next season. The Koreans where too strong for us this year

November '30 Winning back to back J.League cups and now J1 League Champions to add to the growing trophy collection. The loss to Beijing makes qualifying from the group that bit more difficult. 3 players with 30+ G/A this season with an honorable mention to Takahashi with his 24 assists

October '30 Another productive month aside from the humiliation from a strong Ulsan, we underestimated them at their ground. 6 points clear at the top of the table with 4 games to go and another J.League cup Final coming up. We need to start taking our performances to the big clubs in our group as only the top 3 best placed 2nd placed teams go through in the group stages after 1st place.

Youth Intake Arima being the best of the bunch, a lot of work needed to be done if he is to reach potential

September '30 A bounce back month, with the exception of FC Tokyo. We also smashed the amount of goals scored in a season record with still 6 games to go. Our first game back in the AFC Champions League was a lovely 6-0 win with Beijing next up in the group phase. Our front 2 both have 18 goals in the league this tactic is goal hungry. Lujan is interested in a permanent move which I may look into at the end of the season.

August '21 The Champions League group has been drawn with a trip to Beijing Guoan of China, Hong Kongs Kitchee Sports Club and South Korean and 3 times AFC Champions League winners Ulsan HD. A tough group stage but one I'm comfortable of overcoming. August was a very tough month with only 1 league win, but still staying top of the table. Injuries and the transfer window making a big impact on performances. Players leaving during the summer window include Ikeda for 7.5mill Players incoming include 2 DM's for squad depth and Shimizu as a striker to slowly introduce for when Lujan's loan ends

July '30 Another win keeping the run going and a strong performance in a friendly vs Eintracht Frankfurt gives us a huge boost going forward.

June '30 A short month with a visit from Celtic in which we held our own even with 10 men. Unbeaten in the league puts us top of the league with a game in hand going into the second half of the season. July see's 1 game in the league and a friendly vs Eintracht Frankfurt. Disappointment in the Emperors cup for 2 seasons in a row thanks to an extra time loss to Thespakusatsu Gunma from J2 League.

Noda looks quality, mind sending to Kashima? haha

May '30 May seemed to last forever, but we didn't mind as we went unbeaten in the league and progressed to the Quarter Finals in our defence of the J.League cup. The players seem to like this tactic with 28 goals scored and 14 conceded in the month. Lujan has taken to the team like a duck to water with his performances. 5 points off top with a game in hand and Tokyo Verdy coming up. June is going to be an interesting month with the start of the Champions League nearly upon us we are hitting all the right notes. Kind of feels like the Double winning season I had with Hungry Lions, but we're not getting carried away. I am starting to write a shortlist of teams I want to manage in the MLS and Mexico the first to come available will be the one I apply for when I have won the AFC Champions League but I will share that list when the time is right.

April '30 April was the month of goals, 3 wins 2 losses and a goalless draw then more goals against Vissel in the league and a demolishing victory in the J.League cup ensured progress. We're still in the top 4 which currently puts us in the 2031 AFC Champions League, with the 2030 Champions league not starting til August.

March '30 March was a much promising month with the only loss coming to last seasons champions. March also see's us bring in Angel Lujan on loan from River Plate for 300k to help with the strike force and the current tactic I also forgot to mention we moved into a new stadium at the start of the season Zico Park aptly named after Kashima and Brazilian legend Zico.

Feb '30 2 wins 2 loses after a change in formation, wanting more attacking prowess we've changed to a 4-1-3-2 formation probably should have done that beginning of pre season but I believe the lads can adapt with the signing of Kamekawa as the Engache role. With Rodrigo being injured Massafera has moved into 1 of the 3 AM roles. Matsumura is training to become a AM instead of a winger scoring in his first outing in his new position.