The first game of May was a crucial one, away at Manchester United. We had a thrilling game with them at Croft Park back in December, it ended 3-3! I would have settles for less goals now, definitely. The first half was even but my centre back, Tiberiu Radulescu, made the difference with a powerful header from a corner kick. Manchester United got back on level terms right after the break with a controversial goal, one of my defenders was lying on the ground injured but they didn’t kick the ball out, they continued and scored! They created a lot of pressure on our defense after that but Silviu Lung was in great shape, he pulled off some awesome saves to give us the good result.

Arsenal also drew, 0-0 at West Ham, while Manchester City got an 1-1 draw at Sunderland. With those results the table was unchanged at the top with two more games to be played for them and four games for us! We were getting closer to the title!

But until then we had Europe on our minds, the second leg of the semi final against HSV. We did well in the first leg, we got an 1-1 away draw, that gave us a good chance to win the qualification at Croft Park. We started the game with great determination and we deservedly were 2-0 up after 20 minutes! HSV clawed one back with a fortuitous goal but Nicao took care of things immediately, we were 3-1 up at the break! I expected HSV to crumble but those Germans never give up, do they? They played very well in the second half and created a lot of pressure but my players kept cool and scored another goal on a counter attack! We were through to the final and we were going to meet Valencia, they knocked out Shakhtar Donetsk easily. Nicao got a minor injury, just a bruise, but that was going to keep him out of our next league game…

And our next league game was at home with 15th placed Fulham. Along with Nicao I had another 5 unavailable players, they were all away with their national under 19 teams! I had limited choices to make regarding the first eleven but fortunately I had a great Roman Pavlyuchenko to rely on. It was an even first half but our veteran striker made the difference with one goal and a perfect assist! Fulham went all out attack after the break but my lads were getting used to that kind of pressure. Pavlyuchenko scored again to make sure of the win, the fans love him!

I checked the other results immediately after the game but there were not surprises, Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City won their games, so the table was unchanged! We just needed to get a win out of the three remaining games!

But the bad news struck… Two of the league games got re-arranged again due to all those under 19 international call ups and our calendar was unbelievable! We had a league game one day before the Europa League final and another game two days after that! That was a mess…

We had to win the Bolton game, we absolutely had to…

So much for the re-arranging, my five under 19 internationals were not available for the Bolton game, they were traveling back at the time of the match Anyway, we had to win it, with or without them! Nicao was determined to show his skills and he did just that in the 11th minute, he scored with a perfectly placed shot! Nine minutes later Tomas Necid headed home a cross, we were 2-0 up! Tiberiu Radulescu showed his aerial skills again after the break, a powerful header from a corner kick and we were in control! Seven minutes later right back Damien Grange whistled in a powerful cross from the right wing, the keeper caught it but went straight into the back of the net with the ball in his hands! Bolton tried very hard to get a consolation goal in the second half an they finally got it, but it was too late for them… We won the Premier League title, we won it! The Blyth Spartans, yes, the mighty Blyth Spartans!

We were the youngest team in the league with an average age of only 22! We also were the poorest team in the league, we had the lowest average wages… But we did it!

I was relieved, I could send in the reserves for the Everton game. Everton had to win it, they were in 7th place with a chance to get an Europa League spot, so they could were lucky… An interesting thing happened in the 18th minute, centre back Gabor Baranyai got sent off for catching an opponent with his elbow. I wanted to use him as a reserve for the Europa League final but under the circumstances I had to send in Cristian Suarez in the Everton game and that led to an unlikely situation: Baranyai will be well rested for the final while Suarez will be a bit tired… I don’t know if that was Baranyai‘s intention but it worked, he was going to play in the Europa League final Oh, we lost the game 3-0, it didn’t matter anymore.

Finally, the final! It was going to be played at Delle Alpi in Torino, Juventus‘ stadium. Valencia had a great team, with a fantastic duo upfront: David Villa and David Silva. I wanted my team to be aggressive right from the start, to get the ball and play it quickly on the wings. I didn’t expect that to happen right in the first minute though, but it did! We won the ball back in midfield, Nicao took it on the left wing, crossed it in perfectly and Necid scored! Valencia looked a bit shocked and we took advantage of that. Twentieth minute, approximately the same drill, Nicao on the left, the ball went back to Mickey Wordsworth at the edge of the area and he fired it right in! I couldn’t believe it, we were 2-0 up! Unfortunately my lads lost a bit of concentration and Valencia clawed one back right away. They continued to push forward until half time but we managed to survive, we were 2-0 up at the break.

I had to do something though, with that amount of pressure on our defense we would have been sitting targets in the second half. Valencia‘s three central midfielders were the cause of the problem, they created a lot and we had to stop them. I instructed my players to take care of them, to make the second half a living hell for those three. “They shouldn’t have any breathing space, hang on to them, tackle them, make them scream and ask for their mommies!”, that’s what I said at half time… And it worked! My goalkeeper had almost nothing to do in the second half, we were breaking Valencia‘s attacks before they reached our penalty area. I expected us to create chances on counter attacks but my players lacked the energy to do that, we had to fight… We picked up a lot of yellow cards, I don’t remember how many, but it was one of Valencia‘s players that got sent off, Raul Albiol got his second yellow card eight minutes before the final whistle. At that point I  instructed my players to waste time until it ends, keep the ball, stall, dive, lye on the ground and ask for the physio, kick it into the stands, whatever it takes. And we won, it wasn’t pretty by any means but we were going home with the trophy! Get in!

The last game of the season was totally unimportant for us but it was crucial for Wolves, they had to get a win to survive in the Premier League! And they got it, my players were high on champagne

Real Madrid won the Champions League, they beat Bayern Munich 1-0 to lift the trophy. We’re going to play against them in the UEFA SuperCup, that’s going to be pretty! The domestic cups were won by Newcastle (Carling Cup) and Tottenham (FA Cup). A look at the table again, I’ve been looking at it for hours

Vagner Love was the best player in the Premier League again and also the top goalscorer. My players dominated the tackles department though

Here are the team stats, including the wonderful youngsters and reserved that gave their best when we needed them. My strikers were great this season, Nicao and Necid bagged 25 goals each! Centre back Tiberiu Radulescu also shone, he scored 13 times, not bad at all!

Undoubtedly our best player was right back Damien Grange, he scored 14 goals and made 15 assists, we would never have had these results without him! If I could get a left back as good as he is we would win absolutely everything!

I reserved a special tribute to our veteran, Roman Pavlyuchenko. He didn’t play a lot this season but he was always ready to give his best when I needed him, he scored 8 important goals. His contract is expiring now and I don’t know what to do, I would give him another year just to thank him for the two wonderful seasons that he spent with us but on the other hand I’m sure that he won’t be getting too many chances to play in the first team, he’ll be 34 years old soon… I guess I shouldn’t be too sentimental and let him go, maybe sign him as a coach later on…

The club is in a good financial position now, 45 million euro in the bank, I hope to have a good transfer budget

Until then the board decided to install some seats in the stadium, not too many though…

Do you remember how it all started back in 2008? I took charge of the Blyth Spartans in Blue Square North, released 24 players on free transfers and signed 12 players for free… The good old days…

What’s next then? Nothing much, I’ll just strengthen the squad and go for the Champions League!

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We were in 2nd place at the end of March, one point behind Manchester United but with a game in hand. The first match in April was the Premier League game with 13th placed Crystal Palace. They had a great start this season but lost their tempo along the way. We had a thrilling match with them in November, we won it 4-3! I expected a difficult game but it was quite easy, we were in control throughout the match. Right back Damien Grange fired in another free kick from 30 yards out but my strikers were missing too much, I was a bit concerned about that.

The good news came after the game, Manchester United lost 2-0 at Arsenal, so we were back on top with one game in hand!

The game that everybody in England was expecting finally game, Blyth Spartans versus AS Roma, an unlikely encounter a few years ago. I expected a very difficult game and I hoped for a narrow win but it wasn’t like that at all. Roma’s defenders had a miserable day, centre backs Mexes and Ponzio looked like Dumb & Dumber out there!

We took advantage of their errors but played very well overall, Roma couldn’t hurt us at all. not even in the last half hour when we played with only 10 men! The away leg would be difficult but I was confident, we couldn’t lose it 4-0, no way!

It was hard to motivate my players after such a great win, they were enthusiastic! We had to be concentrated though, we had a difficult away game at Newcastle, the 11th placed squad in the Premier League. We defeated them 2-1 at home back in November but they had a very good record at St. James’ Park. We started the game pretty well, created a few chances but they cleared a few off the line. One of those went in eventually, we were 1-0 up at the break. Newcastle looked better in the second half and finally got the equaliser from a penalty kick. It looked like we were heading for a draw but Nicao showed another moment of fantastic football and saved us again with a solo effort.

Next up, away at Roma… We had to be careful, despite the 3 goal lead that we took in the home leg, I was sure that if we would manage to keep the scoreline tight until half time the game would be ours. We did better than that, kept possession of the ball and even scored one right before the break! We couldn’t lose it anymore, that was sure. We kept cool in the second half and scored another one to win it 2-1, a great result! It came at a price though, midfielder Mickey Wordsworth got injured and was going to be out for two weeks

Hamburger SV defeated Rangers on away goals, so we’ll have another trip to Germany ahead. We have a slight advantage, the first leg will be away… Shakhtar Donetsk and Valencia will play in the other semi final.

Back to the Premier League… We had only two more games to play, another one of our matches was postponed due to the European games that we had to play. But let’s take a look at those games on by one. First up, at home with 5th placed Aston Villa. A very good team, we snatched a 2-2 draw at Villa Park in November. All my worries were gone by half time though, my lads were playing beautifully. We were quite unlucky to concede two goals but it doesn’t really matter anymore… What does matter is that another one of my central midfielders got injured, Linas Urbsys will be out for 3 weeks! That’s not the right time for an injury crisis, not at all

At that point we were two games behind the pack but we were still in 1st place, two points ahead of Arsenal!

The last league game of the month was a tough one, away at 10th placed Tottenham. We won the home game 2-1 in November but Tottenham knocked us out of the FA Cup in January after two thrilling games, on penalties! We got off to a good start, Tomas Necid scored in the 6th minute! Tottenham made it all square after the break and despite playing well we couldn’t get another one in. Fortunately Nicao was in the mood for miracles again, he took the ball and didn’t stop until it reached the net! He’s brilliant, our hero!

We were still unbeaten, only two defeats so far, both of them in October! The Champions League place that we were dreaming of at the start of the season was almost ours now but we had a huge chance to challenge for the title! Unbelievable, I didn’t such a big surprise from my players. They look like real champions out there, a real team! Only 5 more games to play, it’s going to be tough but wonderful!

Until then we had to travel to Germany for the first leg of the Europa League semi final. HSV came from the Champions League, they finished third in the group stage behind Inter and PSV. After that they knocked out very good teams, Marseille, Porto and Rangers. The game started badly, centre back Alex Silva scored with a great header from an indirect free kick. Our fabulous right back, Damien Grange, was suspended for that game, so I had to bring in Christos Karakatsanis to replace him. The Greek was happy to get the opportunity and he expressed that on the pitch, he fired in a great curling shot and it went straight in the back of the net! We continued to defend well, heroic at times, and we snatched a good 1-1 draw, a good result that gives us a good chance to fight for the final at home!

Take a look at the May fixtures, it’s going to be a massacre! We’ll start with a crucial game at Old Trafford and then we’ll have 5 games in 10 days! I guess I’ll need all the players that I have, form the last 17 year old to Pavlyuchenko, our 33 year old veteran!

That’s how it was, stay tuned to find out how it’s going to be in May, the final dash towards eternal glory!

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As long as the month started with an away game at Manchester City a good run was not very likely… We drew 2-2 with Manchester City in October, we just couldn’t cope with Vagner Love‘s explosive skills. Now we had to face him again… The game started pretty well for us though, Luca Siligardi scored his first goal for the club and we were 1-0 up at half time. Manchester City were dangerous in attack but somehow we managed to keep a clean sheet. That was until the 73rd minute…

We kept cool after conceding the goal and we snatched an important away draw, we were still the Premier League leaders!

Next up, the first leg of the Europa League clash with AZ Alkmaar. We had to get the most out of the home leg because AZ were very strong at home. We played a perfect first half and thanks to Nicao and Necid we were 3-0 up at the break! Unfortunately my players got a bit complacent in the second half and allowed Alkmaar to dominate the game. We conceded a corner kick goal a few minutes before the final whistle, that will make the away leg pretty difficult.

Until then we had another tough battle to face at home, against Chelsea. They were in 7th place because they just drew 1-1 at home with Wigan! They did beat us in October though, 1-0, we had to get revenge. The game started in the worst possible way, my keeper made a huge error and Chelsea were up 1-0. I hoped to score one goal before half time but my players had other plans… Siligardi and Nicao made two goals right away and then Damien Grange banged in another incredible strike from 30 yards out!

We could have scored another one or two goals in the second half but we missed great chances easily. Anyway, it was a very important win for our morale and for the league table too!

We had a two goal margin before the start of the second leg at Alkmaar but I warned my players against complacency, the game wasn’t going to be easy! In fact, Alkmaar were determined to score and we did well to keep the 0-0 scoreline at half time. Two corner kick goals made the score 1-1 after the break but my goalie was the hero, Silviu Lung, he earned forgiveness for the blunder that he made in the Chelsea game with a few brilliant saves! We were through to the quarter finals!

And we’ll have tough opposition, we’ll play against Italian side AS Roma! If we manage to knock them out we’ll get either Hamburg or Rangers in the semi final! And guess what, we were the only English team left in the Europa League quarter finals!

But before the Roman Holiday we had to continue our Premier League battles. Our next game was away at 18th placed Wigan, a team that we defeated 3-1 at home back in November. They were hungry for points and looked very determined in the first half, they dominated the first 45 minutes. My left back got sent off right before the break so we were in a very difficult situation. We played much better with only 10 men on the pitch though, much better, and midfielders Mickey Wordsworth and John Bostock brought us another 3 points!

We were in pretty good form but unfortunately our last game of the month, away at Wolves, was re-arranged due to international call ups… Manchester United climbed up to the top spot because of that but we were only one point behind them with a game in hand!

I can’t help it, I have to praise Nicao again He was absolutely wonderful so far, although sometimes he misses more than he scores. He scored 19 goals and made 14 assists so far but apart from those numbers he is a leader of the team, he always drives us forward when things look bad on the pitch.

April will be a decisive month, we’ll have 7 games to play, very difficult games each and every one of them…

If we’ll manage to stay unbeaten through April then we might be in with a chance… for the title! I also hope that we would be able to get past AS Roma and follow our European dream…

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The first big test was at home with Liverpool. They were in 7th place but I couldn’t forget that they defeated us 1-0 back in October at Anfield Road. Fernando Torres was injured now, so we had a big chance to get a better result. The way my players fought was unbelievable, they played really well and pushed Liverpool back throughout the game. We were quite unlucky though, very unlucky. It ended 0-0 although we had huge chances to score… We should have won this and the two points that we lost could be costly.

Next up, the first leg of the Europa League first knockout round, away at Dinamo Zagreb. I received some bad news before the game, my centre back Tiberiu Radulescu got injured, he’ll be back in training after a month! That was a big blow, he played extremely well so far. We had to score at least one goal, that was what I was thinking before the game. My players did a lot better than that Cristian Suarez scored a quickfire double in the first half and then Mickey Wordsworth and Nicao scored another two in the second half, superb goals from both of them. There were also some bad news, left winger Tom Chapple got injured, he’ll be out for 5 weeks!

Our next game was surely not going to be as easy, we had to meet Arsenal… They were in 4th place and we didn’t win against them this season, we drew 1-1 in September and got beaten 3-1 in the Carling Cup quarter final in December. We didn’t beat them this time either, although we had a pretty good chance to do that. We were leading 2-1 at the break but my defenders had to work very hard in the first half to keep up with their amazing strike force. My fullbacks were pretty tired at half time but I was afraid to bring in the substitutes and maybe that was an error. I guess you’d better watch the highlights and judge that for yourselves.

Despite the two draws we were still the leaders, two points above Manchester City!

The last game of the month was the second leg of the Europa League tie, but the problem was already solved from the first leg. I had the chance to give the reserves and under 18 players an opportunity to prove themselves and they did pretty well. Midfileder Danny Osman (18 years old) and striker Jason Warren (21 years old) scored their first goals for the club, I guess the future looks good

We will play against Dutch side AZ Alkmaar in the next round, they knocked out Atletico Madrid! It won’t be easy but what will be even more challenging is the first game in March, away at 2nd placed Manchester City! Then we’ll have Chelsea coming at Croft Park, there will be great entertainment!

Now I have to think about a way to neutralize Vagner Love… Any ideas?

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It was an extremely entertaining match, both teams tried to score as many goals as they could… Unfortunately my defenders had a very bad day, they looked clumsy and slow throughout the game. The great firepower that we had upfront brought us a high scoring draw, the game was going to be replayed at Croft Park…

Next up, the first league game of the year, at home with local rivals Sunderland. They were in 14th place and we had a good game with them back in August, it finished 2-2. We had to win this but my players had a terrible first half, they didn’t create anything in attack. At half time I reminded them that it’s an important game for our fans and they have to do their best to please them. They looked more determined in the second half and easily scored a few to give us an important win.

The next game was a difficult one, away at 15th placed Portsmouth. We won the home game with a few headaches in August, 3-2, and I expected a tough one again. With Tomas Necid injured and Nicao very tired we didn’t have enough strength upfront. Two players saved our day though, goalkeeper Silviu Lung jr and centre back Tiberiu Radulescu, both Romanian Silviu Lung kept a cleen sheet despite having to save some very difficult chances, and that made Chelsea make me an offer for him. Radulescu scored again from a corner kick and looked solid at the back, he brought another important 3 points in our bag!

Next up, the FA Cup 3rd round replay with Tottenham… It was a cracker again, great entertainment for the crowd. Unfortunately we couldn’t win it this time either, although we played very well. We didn’t have too much luck, we lost it after the penalty shootout and we scored a stupid own goal during extra time

We had to focus on the Premier League, we had two straight wins and our next opponent was 11th placed West Ham, a team that we defeated 3-2 away from home in August. We didn’t play well at all but we had two players in top form, goalkeeper Silviu Lung and young Spanish backup striker Pablo, he finally scored his first goals for the club! It wasn’t pretty but I was pleased to see my strikers convert their chances with great composure and confidence.

Next up, an away game at Queens Park Rangers, they were in 17th place and we had a good game against them in September, we won 1-0. Tomas Necid was back after an injury that sidelined him for 3 weeks and he was pretty impatient, he scored right away! We were 3-1 up at the break and QPR tried hard in the second half but Silviu Lung proved his skills again. Chelsea were desperate to get him but I kept refusing their offers. Although QPR played pretty well our victory never seemed to be in danger.

Four straight wins, we had a good chance to make it five in the last game of the month, at home with Middlesbrough. They were in 11th place and we had a difficult game with them back in September, 1-1 away. The showed a solid defense and tried to score on quick counter attacks. We pushed forward throughout the game but it seemed like it was going to be a goalless draw… Midfielder Mickey Wordsworth didn’t agree with that though… We were playing with only 10 men after left winger Martin Panik got injured but Wordsworth didn’t care, he banged in a powerful shot and gave us our fifth straight win!

Please sit down now, you’re going to be surprised… We were the new Premier League leaders, 4 points above Manchester City!We had to keep our feet on the ground though and admit that we had easier opponents in January, that gave us the chance to get 15 points. Things might change once we’ll get to face the tough teams again… Anyway, we’ll enjoy it while it lasts

I decided to sell four of my backup players, they were starting to moan about getting more chances to play for the first team and I thought that it would be better to let them go. I got a nice amount of money for them too

With that money I brought my wage budget back on track and signed four replacements, Brazilian young prospect centre back Jorge, midfielder John Bostock and two wingers, promising youngster Zdenek Matejka and experienced Italian Luca Siligardi.

Siligardi is the only one of the four to be a first team regular for Blyth, he is a creative winger that could add a great touch to our attack. He can play on both wings, that was an important factor in my decision to sign him, along with the low price tag.

February will be less exhausting, we’ll have only four games to play. But the two league games will be incredibly tough, with Liverpool and Arsenal. We’ll also have to be careful with Dinamo Zagreb, they could surprise us if we get complacent.

That’s how January was, a great month for us despite the FA Cup setback. As I said, I don’t know if we are going to be able to keep that 1st place but I’m definitely going to enjoy that as long as it will last

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