Two seasons at Pro Vercelli in Football Manager 2024 and I bleed red and white

Pro Vercelli is not one of the best-known clubs in Italian football, at least not anymore, but when you look through the archives there are few teams as successful. Unfortunately, all of their successes came in the early 20th Century when they won seven Serie A titles between 1907 to 1922. Now the team was languishing in Serie C after being relegated from Serie A in the 30s due to the rise of professional football and falling down the football ladder since.

As part of my ambitious Football Manager 2024 save, I decided it was time to wake the sleeping giant.

The first problem was going to be getting out of Serie C (the third division of Italian football), a league that is split into three, each including 20 teams with only one team from each securing automatic promotion and the rest left to scrap it out in a play-off.

Like most people, I knew very little about the side going into this challenge, but for me, they were the ultimate fallen giant. I had one simple objective, get Pro Vercelli back to the big time rubbing shoulders with the modern greats of Italian football like Juventus and AC Milan. I have been playing Football Manager for years, but this would be my biggest challenge yet - with a 5,000+ seater stadium and no money at all it was time to dive in and see what we had to work with.

Meeting the squad 

My aim in my first season with Pro Vercelli was simple, at least in theory - all I needed to do was get promoted automatically to avoid the chaos that is a Serie C playoff. In practice, it was going to prove a challenge. The media had predicted I would come 5th this season, which isn’t too bad but to win the league I would need the boys to play out of their skins. 

The first thing to do once my save had begun was to check out my squad, see who would start, if I have any talented youngsters and who would need an arm round the shoulder to kick on. To my surprise, I had some fantastic youngsters, who were not only good for the future but could get some minutes now. It was only now that my earlier decision to use the new game mode ‘Real World’ would come back to haunt me. 

Every single one of these amazing youngsters was leaving, including three centre-backs whom I had earmarked for greatness. In total nine players left before the end of August - I had some fresh players come in, but it meant I spent my pre-season with players who I didn’t own. I struggled not to get attached to Dario Grechi and Alessandro Machiano among others before they departed but the heart wants what the heart wants. I like to think they'll remember me. 

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Fortunately, I also had 16 players coming in from various clubs. It meant that, although there was a lot to figure out in my early months at Pro Vercelli, I had a decent-sized squad for the coming season.

After 13 games I was soaring. I hadn’t lost a single game with the goals flying in and there was no doubt Pro Vercelli was here to entertain. I opted for a 4-2-3-1 or sometimes a 5-2-3 depending on the quality of my opposition, largely because my right back Lotti couldn’t defend. In those 13 games, I had only kept four clean sheets despite my best player being my goalkeeper, Rizzo (no relation to the rat from the Muppets). It had already become clear I was going to need some defensive reinforcements come January if I intended to maintain my position. 

Bringing in reinforcements 

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Christmas rolled around, and with it came the much-welcomed winter break. Going into the break I had dropped down to second after losing 3-1 to Atalanta’s under-23s. It was a tough pill to swallow considering it was my only loss of the season so far, but my leaky defence meant I had 5 draws in that time.

January was here, and although I didn’t have much in the budget I still managed to scrape enough together for two signings - both on a free. Coming in was Massimiliano Busellato - a 31-year-old ball-winning midfielder and Simone Muratore can play centre-back, CDM and central midfield. These two players should hopefully fix my defensive conundrum, securing the top spot in the league. 

With only 12 games to go things started to turn in my favour again after Trento had finally begun to drop points. For now, they were my main rivals and things were tighter at the back after I dropped my defensive line a touch and utilised a narrow 4-1-2-1-2 more frequently. By the time February rolled around, I had qualified for the playoffs, so at least one route into promotion was secured but I didn’t want the playoffs - I wanted automatic promotion and the boys deserved a trophy for all their hard work. 

The run-in 

My strong defence throughout February gave me hope, but it was purely temporary. I went on to concede 10 goals in six games in March, partly because I drew three of my six games. Yet, with only four games left of the season, I was somehow 5 points clear at the top and Serie B was well and truly in our sights. The only problem was, as March progressed my form continued to fall off a cliff and my final four games felt like must-win contests as the teams around me were beginning to hit their stride. I was growing concerned. 

A team meeting before my first game of April went well, the players were pumped to finish top and I was unbelievably confident against 18th place Alessandria. By the end of the first half, I was 3-1 down. I was shocked, the numbers were in my favour and this was a team that looked like relegation fodder - needless to say, some bottles were thrown at halftime as I proceeded to give the team both barrels.

And to my surprise it worked, in the 76th minute, I scored my equaliser and the win was within touching distance. Petrella, my backup right winger, rifled it low into the corner after making an impact off the bench. Utter scenes in my living room. A minute later, I scored an own goal with relief quickly turning into frustration and my dreams of automatic promotion slipping away. 

The 4-4 draw was followed by a 2-1 loss to third-place Padova meaning I needed to win my last two games to guarantee promotion, or hope everyone around me lost. It was going to be tense, I was nervous but we had a simple objective and were still on top.

I won the next match but so did the teams around me so the situation remained the same - I needed to win, or hope the other teams dropped points and my last game was against Atalanta’s under-23s who had already given me a good hiding this season. I was nervous… but I shouldn’t have been, I won 4-3 in a match that can only be described as good ol’ fashioned ding dong and, just like that, we were up. I had done what I had set out to do in the first season, all that was left was the Italian C Super Cup.

The Italian C Super Cup 

The Italian C Super Cup is the winner of each Serie C league popped into a group, playing each team once. Whoever has the most points from the 3-team group will win and be crowned champions. It's incredibly convoluted, but that's Serie C. During these three games I wanted to try out a more defensive tactic to prepare for the coming season, so I opted for a 5-2-1-2 that was a bit deeper, and more direct but still had plenty of pressing.

The first game was against Cesana who had a lot more possession but we battered them 3-1 to get off to a great start. The next game was against Crotone, The Serie C/C winners by 11 points, I had my work cut out for me but I had faith. Unfortunately, I lost 2-1 in this game, not creating as many chances as I would have liked with my new system - somehow though, I won the Italian Super Cup on goal difference. It wasn’t pretty, we each had only 3 points but you have to revel in your successes and for my money, we deserved it. 

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After achieving our goals for our first season, we had no time to dwell because the next season was going to be much harder and we would need to work hard to stay up. On top of the hard work, a more defensive tactic would need to be crafted and some personnel changes were bound to happen but it wouldn’t have been possible without some unbelievable individual performances.

The aforementioned Lotti, who was sadly departing the club at the end of the season, was a creative wizard with 13 assists whilst Gianmori Comi bagged 23 goals in just 30 appearances in what proved to be a very prolific attack. January addition Muratore proved his value by getting into the best Eleven of the season but what was most noticeable was loanees Haoudi and Spavone getting 25 and 24 contributions each. Maybe, if the board are generous with the budgets for the upcoming season, I could be reunited with two stars of our promotion campaign. 

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Season 2 - On the up 

At the end of my first season, I had the customary team meeting with the squad about what we could expect from the coming season. I went in positive, I told the boys we should aim to avoid relegation... they were fuming. There was red everywhere. At the end of a stellar season, I had ended it by upsetting every single player in my squad. The next big moment in my preparation for the season was the email from the board stating my budget for the coming season - it wasn’t pretty. I had £156,000 in the transfer kitty, whilst my wage budget was at £23,000. My hopes of staying up would rely on some savvy business and maybe even a miracle.

I had a few players leave on free transfers who would need replacing, as well as the natural strengthening needed so my squad could compete at a higher level. Luckily, my miracle came in the form of Sassuolo meeting first-choice goalkeeper Rizzo’s £625,000 release clause. With half a million in my pocket, I knew I could improve Pro Vercelli, but it was still going to be tough to stay up. To strengthen I signed 11 players, as well as bringing Rizzo back on loan for one last ride. You can check out the players I signed in the table below: 

The standout signing was Antonio Vergara who could play in the heart of midfield or in the hole behind the striker. I also brought in Panico (who wasn't a panico signing I promise) at left back who looked to be a steal on a free. As you can see, the majority of my signings were free but I was feeling positive, maybe even optimistic for the coming season - if I could avoid the drop it would be a success. This was a very young squad but hopefully one with a point to prove.

Serie B here we go 

During pre-season, I continued with the 5-2-1-2 formation, but it had little effect causing me to lose all of my pre-season matches. My first competitive game was the Italian Cup Preliminary Round and I won 1-0 against Ancona thanks to a Muratore goal in the eighth minute. I was using Muratore as a Libero in a back three at this point but in the next round against Bologna I lost 2-0 and it was time for this new formation to go. I didn’t have enough defenders who I trusted and maybe a Libero was a bit too big-brain for this level, this change led me to revert to a 4-1-2-1-2 that I would use for the majority of the season. 

My first five games of the league campaign were Genoa, Vicenza, Palermo, Parma and Sampdoria - the fixture list had not been kind but these were the teams I would need to pick up points against to succeed. To my surprise I won my first two games, gaining a total of 7 points from my opening five fixtures. But in late September my 4-1 victory over Cantazaro would be my last win for over a month. I slogged away, constantly conceding goals despite dominating possession, my midfield was sound but my defence was leaky and my attack was inconsistent. It would remain a consistent theme throughout the season. 

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Despite my early season inconsistencies, I was still offered two job interviews. The clubs were Levante and Auxerre, but where would be the challenge in that? I told both clubs where to go and signed a three-year deal with Leoni to secure my future. Sometimes, signing a new deal can lead to an uptick in form and hopefully, it was the push the squad needed to maintain our league position after the winter break.

Somehow, as January rolled around, with the lads returning from their Christmas joy, we were sat in 11th. We had won six, drawn seven and lost seven. If nothing else, it was consistently inconsistent and it all relied on Condello’s fine form. So far he had already earned three man of the match awards, scoring six goals and grabbing four assists in the process - sadly he had no interest in signing a new deal so I would be losing him for free at the end of the season. 

It is the hope that kills you 

January began with an unsuccessful senior affiliate request despite asking every month since the season began, and I had no money to strengthen but luckily relegation should be easily avoidable. The big problem was, that there was a slight glimmer of hope of a playoff place - it was only seven points away. To make this ambition a reality I would need to fix my patchy form, our inconsistency was holding us back after not winning back-to-back games since the first two games of the season. 

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Regardless of what I tried, my form wouldn’t shift. I switched formation, I played youngsters, I dropped deep, I pressed higher and yet it didn’t matter what I did, I couldn’t climb up the table. In March, I didn’t win a single game, not one, but I did get three 3-3 draws in a row. You can say what you like about this team, but there was no denying just how entertaining they could be. After our winless run in March, we managed three wins in April which meant I was only five points off the play-off places with four games left. I didn’t want to get ahead of myself but it was hard not to get excited, and if football has taught me anything, it's the hope that kills you.

First up was Palermo in fifth. We beat them 2-0. It was scintillating stuff and once again Condello was on the scoresheet ensuring victory. I don’t know why Condello was so good, he had no stand-out stats but I always knew he would turn up even if he was only 20. After Palermo were Vicenza, Venezia and Sampdoria. Vicenza sat in sixth, so a win against them meant I would only be a point behind, a point off the playoffs for promotion. Now more than ever I needed the consistency I have never found.

Unfortunately, this season, it just wasn’t meant to be. I lost my final three games and ended up finishing 10th. It would be an incredibly tight end of the season with only a few points between 4th and 10th. 

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Pro Vercelli would be staying in Serie B for now, with the young player of the season winner Condello moving onto Empoli but that was okay. I felt disappointed in the end, but I should’ve been proud. We stayed up, it was boring at times but we never once feared relegation. A season I thought would be a true struggle passed by in a flash, proving to the board we had what it takes to play at this level. Hopefully, next season they will give us some more backing in the transfer market so we can make a splash and surge up the table. My first two seasons had also secured my place on the club's favoured personnel list which was nice. 

We will be back soon to see what's next for Leoni. Could the club finally hit the top flight?