The Master League adventures thread

[rockstrongo]

Half of my very tough 4 game stint (Lazio/Napoli/Juventus/Atalanta) is done!
Lazio away was a pretty comfortable ride, held a 1-0 lead up until the 80th min when I closed the game with a 2-0 win.


Then Napoli at home.
A game that I felt were a uphill struggle all the way.
Napoli scored 1-0 early a find half from a mistake by Romanogli not clearing a header and I was 1-0 down
Started chasing the game from the 65th min, all players up front and managed to make it 1-1 from Bakayoko.
Then on a counter attack when i chas d the winner Napoli scored 2-1 on me, even though creating a few chances I couldn't get an equaliser.
First loss of the season.

Next game is Juventus away, a team i sit 6 points ahead of, so this could be a massive step if i win, a nail biter if I lose.

 

[isureaper31]

Houston Dynamo ML Season Preview (2024: Year 1)

The Houston Dynamo will go into the season with new manager Vince Ainsworth taking over the club from outgoing manager Ben Olsen that led Houston to a 9th place finish overall in the league table and was one win away from making it to the finals of MLS Cup. The club looks to be at a crossroads for this season all but 2 players are on the last year of their contract and with a new manager on the books things could be a bit messy in the Bayou City.

Projected 23-man roster for Houston



*Note that team chemistry will be set to lowest number at the start of the season.

Houston will be looking to their high profile CF signing, Ezequiel Ponce to produce along with a talented midfielders of Coco Carrasquilla and Amine Bassi for a Houston attack that can produce. Steve Clark looks poised to be named Houston's captain as the experience keeper continues to his role in front of net. One of Ainsworth's first areas to address in this squad is the talent and depth of the back 4, that will need hold firm in order for Houston to make a title challenge some of the most talented clubs in the MLS. According to reports, Hector Herrera is very likely to be remaining on the bench for Ainsworth to start this Spring and the rumor mill is already hinting that Herrera maybe looking to go elsewhere if things don't pan out in H-Town.

Season Objective for Year 1: Finish 13th in MLS

Master League Regulations for MLS
MLS will be a 20 club contest over 2-stages (Spring and Fall) with a round robin format of 19 matches each stage.

The MLS Spring Championship will start on 17 January and end on 24 June 2024
The MLS Fall Championship will start on 29 July 2024 and end on 5 December 2024

MLS Supporters' Shield champion will be based on the overall standings with most points, goal difference and goals scored over the Spring and Fall Championships.

Yellow/Red Cards: Any players who receives 4 yellow cards or 1 red card will get a 1 match suspension.

Relegation: The bottom 3 clubs in the final overall MLS standings will be relegated from the MLS and replaced by 3 highest ranked MLS clubs not in the in league based on the latest real life CONCACF club rankings. *Note: will be using a tool to manually relegate the clubs within my ML file.

Eligibility to CONMEBOL Liberatores:
MLS Supporters' Shield Winner: Earns birth in the Group stage
MLS Cup Winner & MLS Supporters' Shield Runner-up: Earns birth in Qualifying Round

2024 MLS Club Rankings prior to start of Spring Championship



The pundits have Houston projected to be the 6th best club in MLS this season according to PES Club Rankings. Miami and LAFC are the overall favorites to win the MLS Supporters' Shield. Last years Supporter's Shield champions Cincinnati are projected to finish mid-table this year. The 3 clubs that are favorites to be relegated at the end of 2024 are: Colorado, Montreal, and New York City.

2024 MLS Cup Bracket



The MLS Cup bracket has the Houston taking on New England in the 2nd round on 16 May 2024. Last years MLS Cup winners were Columbus Crew who defeated LAFC in the final. The MLS Cup Finals will take place on 7 November 2024.

I'm working on finalizing a date to stream this ML on my twitch channel very soon, so stay tuned.

 

[rockstrongo]

Juventus away, 6 points clear of them , and they need a win to close the gap.
1-0 Juventus after 5 min and i felt i was in for a long evening but scored an equaliser late first half.
2nd half I took over completely
2-1 was followed by 3-1 and finally the nail in Juventus coffin a very late 4-1 winner.

Brilliant win and we can move on to the next game which is a very tough Atalanta at home.
And creating chances were very hard, tough as nails in both defence and in midfield.
1-0 down and I chased them the whole second half, got a chance in the 70th min and made it 1-1.
After that I gambled and moved the team up front and chased a winner
87th minute and this happened


Table is looking very good, thoughy aim isn't the scudetto, I'll take it if handed/earned

Next game is Fiorentina and should be a tough but manageable game

 

[rockstrongo]

A close call vs Fiorentina away, had a draw late on in the game but managed to sneak in a nice 2-1 victory


Next up is Genoa at home which became a nail biter.
Zlatan with a diving header early on making it 1-0


Genoa equalised in the 75th min and game felt like a lost cause but pushed everything up and made it 2-1 in the 92nd min
A closer se escape again


And with Juventus losing 4-1 away to Bologna the gap is now 11 points.


Lecce next game and i will most likely rotate a bit.
But things are looking very good

 

[rockstrongo]

Quick question for the ML Wizards in here @slamsoze @millossobek etc
I have 4 players out on loan, they were sent out before I took charge of AC Milan.
First one has a return from loan date and will return in June (I'm approaching the January window right now)


The second one is Suso, but he hasn't got a return date, is he out on a permanent loan/loan with a buy out clause and won't return?


Since I'm about to move in to the transfer window I need to know what to expect so I don't buy any player a I already have a substitute for.

 

[isureaper31]

I would presume that Suso is only on a 1 year loan and will return in June as well. The game doesn't allow you to have players on loan for more than 1 year.

 

[rockstrongo]

I would presume that Suso is only on a 1 year loan and will return in June as well. The game doesn't allow you to have players on loan for more than 1 year.

Cheers buddy, I'll hold off on any transfers in til June and see

 

[millossobek]

Quick question for the ML Wizards in here @slamsoze @millossobek etc
I have 4 players out on loan, they were sent out before I took charge of AC Milan.
First one has a return from loan date and will return in June (I'm approaching the January window right now)
View attachment 330252

The second one is Suso, but he hasn't got a return date, is he out on a permanent loan/loan with a buy out clause and won't return?
View attachment 330253

Since I'm about to move in to the transfer window I need to know what to expect so I don't buy any player a I already have a substitute for.

Hey buddy @rockstrongo actually, I've never loaned (or accepted a loan) in any of my Master Leagues or Career Modes so I'm not really qualified to answer your question mate!

I guess I like transfers instead of loans, that way I have kind of a "definitive feeling" of what players I'm keeping!

 

[rockstrongo]

Hey buddy @rockstrongo actually, I've never loaned (or accepted a loan) in any of my Master Leagues or Career Modes so I'm not really qualified to answer your question mate!

I guess I like transfers instead of loans, that way I have kind of a "definitive feeling" of what players I'm keeping!

The thing is he was out on loan when I took over, could be that I edited the roster years ago and sent him out on loan then, really weird when there's no date for his return

 

[the_dude]

I hardly ever loaned players on PES. Always seemed liked a waste. Clubs would make an offer for player like a CB when they already had 5 in the squad and he would have been the worst rated. I didn't think he would even play. Or they would make an offer for a AMF when there formation didn't use one.

And I never brought in loans because I would just buy the player.

 

[rockstrongo]

Now that I'm in January of my first season my t 4 players out on loan had their loan spell fixed, two comes back this June (like I knew) and the two that had no time set on their loans returns next June, which means they've been out on loan for 2 seasons.

And looking at PES Master they belong to the clubs they're out on loan to?
Caldara Atalanta
Suso Sevilla
Must be some live update somewhere in time who screwed this up
Weird as hell

 

[slamsoze]

Now that I'm in January of my first season my t 4 players out on loan had their loan spell fixed, two comes back this June (like I knew) and the two that had no time set on their loans returns next June, which means they've been out on loan for 2 seasons.

And looking at PES Master they belong to the clubs they're out on loan to?
Caldara Atalanta
Suso Sevilla
Must be some live update somewhere in time who screwed this up
Weird as hell

Yo mate. Everything is correct.

Suso belongs to you (Milan) and is on loan to Sevilla until 30-06-2021



Nothing is broken, in this situation. It's from those new features of PES 2020 "revamped" ML, realistic transfers according to tramsfermarkt.

So those loan spells are hardcoded as you start ML and can defy the laws of ML, can be more than a season. But I only the hardcoded ones.

 

[rockstrongo]

Yo mate. Everything is correct.

Suso belongs to you (Milan) and is on loan to Sevilla until 30-06-2021

View attachment 330579

Nothing is broken, in this situation. It's from those new features of PES 2020 "revamped" ML, realistic transfers according to tramsfermarkt.

So those loan spells are hardcoded as you start ML and can defy the laws of ML, can be more than a season. But I only the hardcoded ones.

Perfect mate, thanks!
Good to know when it comes to my future søgnings on that position.
Really appropriate it, was weird with no info at all when returning from losn

 

[rockstrongo]

Two pretty comfy wins vs Empoli and Udinese was followed by a horrible game Vs Frosinone at home.
Was both 1-0 and 2-1 down before securing what I thought were a win, held a 3-2 lead until the 94th min and then Frosinone scored on the last kan vi of the game

Felt that it was to be a tough game, very sluggish and lots of stops so I couldn't get in to rhythm really.
And 3 goals conceded...
I've conceded 11 in 21 before this game.
Extra training and a proper hairdryer will be the next order of business

Bologna away in my next game, fairly tough one that too I suspect

Even up until the 64th minute when Rebic scored from a corner

69th min we made it 2-0 and on the 80 min mark we shut the game down by scoring 3-0
Finally my big transfer Zaniolo was on the score sheet as well.



With Juventus losing another game my gap is now 13 points and things are looking good, my only concern is my slim squad of 20 players available, and those 20 contains 3 goal keepers.
Still I'm going to see this season out and wait for return loanees to return and perhaps one or two in next season as well

 

[rockstrongo]

Pescara at home didn't put up much resistance.
Two goals from both Zlatan and Zaniolo plus a banger from Kessie sealed the deal.





Away vs Sassuolo is most of the times a tough game.
This one, despite the result looking like smooth sailing wasn't, a tough game for sure.
Doubles for Zlatan and a goal +assist for Zaniolo.


Torino at home cing up, a pretty good test, especially since not doing any transfers in but one transfer out for a a player who refused to sign an extension of his contract.
Small squad but looking like a could manage if relatively injury free

 

[rockstrongo]

Well my worries on the Torino game was put to bed quite quickly
Zlatan with a hattrick (his last season and all) sealed the deal.

Still, next game is Roma away, could be a tough one.
Will former Roma golden boy Nicola Zaniolo stand the pressure?
Will he celebrate if scoring?
We'll see.

 

[the_dude]

Well my worries on the Torino game was put to bed quite quickly
Zlatan with a hattrick (his last season and all) sealed the deal.
View attachment 330886
Still, next game is Roma away, could be a tough one.
Will former Roma golden boy Nicola Zaniolo stand the pressure?
Will he celebrate if scoring?
We'll see.

What difficulty are you playing on, beginner?

 

[rockstrongo]

What difficulty are you playing on, beginner?

TP and PA0 20 min games

 

[isureaper31]

Ultimate Master League 2025 - Houston Dynamo: Year One - Episode 1



MLS Spring Table after end of January 2024


Club Performance for the month of January 2024


MLS Team of the Month (January 2024)

 

[Daniel EW]

Ultimate Master League 2025 - Houston Dynamo: Year One - Episode 1



MLS Spring Table after end of January 2024
View attachment 330925

Club Performance for the month of January 2024
View attachment 330926

MLS Team of the Month (January 2024)
View attachment 330931

I like how you try to keep it realistic!

What's the reasoning behind changing the formations making them very tight?

 

[the_dude]

TP and PA0 20 min games

I was just joking with you because you are winning a lot. Keep it up.

 

[isureaper31]

I like how you try to keep it realistic!

What's the reasoning behind changing the formations making them very tight?

Its to all designed to help both teams from getting exploited by space by keeping everything tight on and off the ball. Also to make it even more challenging for me.

 

[rockstrongo]

I was just joking with you because you are winning a lot. Keep it up.

Ha ha sorry mate, didnt ger that
It can get a bit too easy when Team spirit gets up.
Still hard work getting the goals though
And thanks 👍

 

[rockstrongo]

Some updates.
Beat Roma 1-0 away in a very tough game
Then i mov d on to my hands me game vs Hellas Verona, hard defensive team, but with a bit of luck (in defense) I beat them in the end 2-1.

Game of the season commencing Ng up, my 2nd derby Vs Inter (won the first 1-0).
This was extremely tough, fairly even first half with Inter having 2-3 dangerous attacks.
My team couldn't get up to usual standard, guess having a small squad has something to do with it.

A better second half from us but in the 71st minute Edin Dzeko scored a great goal from outside the box making it 1-0 Inter

Even though I tried everything the last 15 min of the game I drew a blank against a very good Inter, bragging rights are blue in Milan (unfortunately)


A very nast game as a derby should be, 3 yellow cards each, should have been more tbh.


I'm sitting quite good on top of the table having a massive gap down to second placed Inter and we move on to my next game, Cagliari at home.

 

[rockstrongo]

Cagliari at home wasnt much of a fight, held a solid 3-0 lead until they came back at the end of the game with a goal


Next up was Vs Salernitana, a bottom team that would be a simple task right?
Nope probably my hardest win so far, the pressed me hard all game and created a few very good goal opportunities, tried everything couldn't break them down, until the 80th minute.
I could obviously afford a loss but getting a late winner like this is so rewarding.

Lazio next game followed by Napoli will be a tough matchup

 

[isureaper31]

Ultimate Master League 2025 - Houston Dynamo: Year One - Episode 2


Club News for the month

• Griffin Dorsey (RB) has agreed to a contract extension until January 2026
• Mateus Vital (AMF) from Cruzeiro in Brazil has been sold to Houston for $1.7 million and will arrive July 1.
• Tate Schmitt (LB) has been sold to LA Galaxy for $440,000, leaving Houston on July 1.

Current Spring Table


Club Performance for the month of February 2024


MLS Team of the Month (February 2024)

 

[rockstrongo]

Two very tough games played.
First up Lazio at home, always a tough team and this was no joke, it was a matter of "I score you score"
Got the win eventually , a very narrow 3-2 win (sorry @Madmac79 )
Two important goals by Zlatan (20th league goal so far this season)


But the game came with a bitter pill, three injuries after the game, and all three out for my next game Vs Napoli away


Though I had a team of tired and players out of their normal positions we really laid down the law down in Campania and we won the game very convincing 3-0
A very powerful display by the team.


Next 3 games will be Vs Juventus, home and away in the Coppa Italia semi finals and then at home in the league

 

[*aLe]

Apart from the defeat in the derby (which, I know, hurts way more than it would if it happened in any other match) I see that you're basically disposing of every opponent that the Serie A fixture list gets in your way.
And, as a Milanista, I approve this!

 

[rockstrongo]

Apart from the defeat in the derby (which, I know, hurts way more than it would if it happened in any other match) I see that you're basically disposing of every opponent that the Serie A fixture list gets in your way.
And, as a Milanista, I approve this!

cheers aLe, and just FYI, Inter is 13 points behind me

 

[isureaper31]

Ultimate Master League 2025 - Houston Dynamo: Year One - Episode 3


Club News for the month

• Heitor (RB) from Guarani in Brazil has agreed to a 6 month loan to Houston starting July 1.

Current Table


Club Performance for the month


Team of the Month