(S10) Season Preview

THE RELEGATION FIGHT​

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VfL Wolfsburg - LasVegasFC​

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The 1st season in the top flight is never an easy one, and manager LasVegasFC may be in over his head. With one of (if not the most) talented fields in TFSerie A history, Vegas will do well to avoid relegation. While this squad may have the talent to survive with attacking options like Vieirinha & I. Olic, it's hard to see this team finishing anywhere above 10th.

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Swansea City - dooz​

Another manager in his 1st season at the top, dooz could very well finish well clear of the drop zone. Swansea, led by an attack filled with speed merchants, could do damage to opposing back lines. But the defense will be the biggest question for this side, and while improvement had been made from S8 to S9, the caliber of offense in the top flight is on another level. While I don't think we'll see dooz in 12th place, the relegation fight seems inevitable.

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Spartak Moscow - BESHIKTAS​

For season after season after season, manager BESHIKTAS was known for being thisclose. When he finally broke the shackles of TFSerie B in Season 8, he finished 3rd, only trailing 2nd by GD. Season 9 was not so kind, as he found himself mired in the relegation zone for much of the season until clawing himself free on the penultimate Matchday. Now at the helm of Spartak, we will see which BESHIKTAS is true to form; the high-flying threat or the thisclose team of yesterday.

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Tigres - IJGator​

Season 9 was a breakout season for manager IJGator. Having never finished higher than 9th in TFSerie A, the perennial yo-yo club finished 6th last season with a very strong Lyon side. In one of the biggest surprises of the draft, IJGator abandoned the French club in favor of Mexican side Tigres. Will that be the decision that dooms him to another yo-yo downstring? It could very well be.

THE MIDDLE OF THE PACK​

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Lille OSC - RedAL925​

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For season after season after season, manager RedAL has maintained a very mediocre status in the top flight. Never posing a serious threat to the title, and never really in danger of relegation. This is the season where all of that could change. Plunged into a preseason scoring drought, things are not looking good in the north of France. It is much more likely that RedAL finds himself at the bottom of the table this season.

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Hannover 96 - rschwep​

Another consistently mediocre team, manager rschwep's results have been anything but. The roller coaster at Hannover has its peaks and troughs each season, but it always ends on level ground. This season should be more of the same for the Germans, who will try (and probably succeed) to take a single-digit place in the table.

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Sunderland - juanchoCT14​

In the early seasons of TFSerie (speaking of), manager juancho was a perennial title threat. After taking a sabbatical for S5-6, juancho returned, pulling himself up the ranks to a 5th place finish in S9. We're still waiting for the world-beater days of yesterday to return, and in Sunderland manager juancho has a team perfectly set up to achieve that past greatness. If this is the season, watch out.

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Lyon - Zikry​

As is the case with many teams at this point in the year, manager Zikry is short on ideas. Every game seems more or less the same, and the passion found in September has waned a touch. At the helm of Lyon, the "Cup King" has in his control one of the most powerful teams in all of TFSerie. If the passion returns, expect another top-3 finish. If not, nothing short of safety is expected.

CREAM OF THE CROP​

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Saint-Etienne - A_Touch_Of_Class​

We've seen this story before. New teams vault up the standings, taking down TFSerie C and then B with relative ease. The view is nice at the top, but the inevitable stumble befalls every team (ask vipermansa, rschwep, heznfire, hokie79...). Perhaps taking a stab at the natural progression, self-proclaimed world-class manager ATOC will try to make his mark in TFSerie A. The talent is certainly there to compete for a title, and while I don't think it will happen this season, I also don't think relegation will be a worry. We'll see in the 1st Match Week how he stacks up, with matches against each of his compatriots in this class...

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Anzhi - Broncos218​

One of 4 managers to compete in TFSerie A for 10 consecutive seasons (along with Zikry, RedAL925, and shiftee), manager Broncos218 has the experience necessary to make a serious run at the title. Another season at the helm of Anzhi will only help his cause, as S. Eto'o & co. pose one of the more potent offensive threats in TFSerie A. If some of those 8 losses in S9 turn into points, a 3rd title could be in the cards.

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Seattle Sounders - CxMacx10​

Manager CxMacx10 has done what many managers would never even dream of trying...win without speed. At West Ham, strength was valued over fleetness of foot, and all that did was lead him to a S9 title and Coppa runners up medal. Now taking his talents stateside, CxMacx10 will have speed and more speed at Seattle Sounders. It's a scary thought, this manager with speed, but the defense will be a huge question mark going into the season. Will Z. Scott & JK Hurtado be able to cope with the much more talented attackers in TFSerie A? This unknown is what may keep the Rave Green from a league title in S10.

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Gremio - shiftee​

No one has had mor success in TFSerie A than manager shiftee, who's 4 league titles are more than any other. He could add a 5th this season (HALF of the titles!) with Gremio, a team not short on speed. The all-time single-season scoring leader Welliton returns at the top for shiftee, who has always had a top scorer on his team. This season should be no different, if he can avoid the slow start that cost him the title in S9. However it shakes out at the top of the table, expect shiftee to be right in the thick of it.

Zikry in the middle of the pack? The now all-French commish rivalry is heating up!!

To be fair all 4 of the "top" teams have something I don't have; proven track records in winning multiple serie titles (ATOC coming off back to back C/B championships)

I honestly thing Zikry did not get enough credit in this preview ! I believe Red needed a pal in the middle of the pack , so he doesn't feel lonely, that's why he put him in there. I would switch ATOC' s spot with Zikry.
I'm not saying ATOC is not good enough, but to put him among the cream of the crop teams without spending not even 1 single season on Serie A is a little too generous.

Fun Fact: To further push the point of my inability to close it out when it counts; in 7 of the 9 seasons here I have finished in the top 3 (others being a 4th and 6th place finish) but still somehow don't have a league title to my name

shiftee on the other hand has 6 top 3 finishes, but has won the title in 4 of those occasions while finishing 2nd in the other 2.


Shockingly, Broncos only has 2 top 3 finishes in 9 seasons. He won the title on both those occasions.

Another fun fact: Both Broncos218 Serie A titles were decided in a playoff game.

I either put just enough effort in to grab the title, or don't try at all

I love all these little fun facts / stats facts. Makes you appreciate all the hard work it takes to keep track of all these things.

One Season...try one game bro lol. Again, another target on my back and high expectations to uphold lol

In 37 Serie C/B games, A_Touch_Of_Class has only lost twice (once in Season 8, once in Season 9), along with only drawing 3 of those 37 games.


*Strangely enough, both of ATOC's losses came to Brazilian opposition: Inter Porto Alegre in Serie C, Corinthians in Serie B.

And one of those "losses" I just quit b/c the clown I was playing cheated. So technically one legit loss. I'm sure I'll be getting more legit losses here in Serie A