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Asgard

Written by Sellas

Forum regular, Sellas is in the hot-seat this week, facing former Cup winners and Premiership stalwarts, Bedworth in R9 (last 16) in the Cup tonight.

You've become the lowest ranked manager left in the Cup this week thanks to a convincing win over II.4's HAC Lich in R8 (608956800) and Star Trekk in R7 (608865509) . You'd been knocked out at R7 in 3 of the last 4 seasons, what would you say has been the catalyst that has made the difference to aid your team's progression this season?

The better seeding as a result of my promotion to II this season has made all the difference. In 3 of the last 4 seasons my cup run ended against a PL team. This time around I reached round 9 before I had to face a PL team. Bedworth United are a very strong team with an impressive midfield. I hope Asgard can give them a run for their money like we did against Jol-lification a couple of seasons ago (596694962)

How did you find out about hattrick?

HT is only the second online game I've ever played. It's as a result of my teammate from the other game, PCW28 (6514543) who asked me to have a go that led to my starting to play HT.

You acquired your team in May 2012, midway through s48. You went on to win a VI title in 6 of your 7 first full seasons, before finally promoting to V.17 and two seasons later to IV.37. Your team's real progression took place after a step back into V.34 in s61, with a hattrick of promotions over the last 3 seasons into II.1. Please tell us a bit about your journey, and are there any tips you can share for managers looking to emulate your success?

TBH, reaching the heights of II was not a target I'd set, as I never thought Asgard would ever be a strong enough team, 15 seasons ago. I did not have the patience (or sufficient knowledge when I started) to farm/develop players & make money from that to spend later on. I would have given up on HT altogether if not for my involvement with the England U20 setup.

This all started with Wil John (366727268). I pulled him at the age of 15 only 3 weeks after I started playing HT and he is still my main forward. I trained him with the hope for him to be selected for the U20 until season 53 and although he never actually played for the U20, it made me more intererested and determined to have one of my own players in the U20 one day. In season 54, one of my home grown players was coming up from my youth academy. This player (391255563) looked like a decent U20 prospect as a winger. I then bought another 17 yo wing prospect & two more 19 yo that had been trained in defence up until then, that could also have a chance to play for U20 as WBs. The rest is history. All 4 played for the U20 & all 4 are still playing for Asgard.

After that, I wanted to have a long-term training plan that would suit these U20 wingers to continue toward the NT and at the same time would help with building/expanding the squad. Excluding 2 defenders & a GK, I'd only bought 2 more players until season 63. They were also English and would fit in with this training plan while they too would also have a chance for making the NT.

From next season, I could potentially have up to 5 players in the NT squad whilst I am competitive & I am not going broke (yet).

A lack of money got in the way building a competitive team until my youngsters came of age but once they were ready, I found it (too) easy to climb up the league pyramid.

My advice? Train players for the U20, build your team around these players & then continue training them to make them potential NT players and unless you have money to burn, simply don't spend 20% extra on wages for foreign players.

My wage bill is one of the highest in England (2nd this week at £360,673) but if you take into account the fact I have an English only squad, my wage bill could be compared with teams that pay in excess of £420k per week. I am saving about a million in wages per season compared to any such team. The notion that if you train players for the NT that you will either end up either broke or too weak to compete is just not true. At least, not anymore.

The fact that Asgard are so high on the England top salaries table & the ease with which I promoted to II straight from V without buying a squad overnight are related, but not in a good way. I think it indicates that the strength of the English league as a whole is not as competitive as it should or could have been. There are many managers that are rebuilding currently but I don't think this is enough of a reason. :( I am afraid that too many good managers have left the game, or lost interest in it

Your manager page tells us that you are an Olympiakos supporter. Olympiakos are the current Greek Champions, who also reached the last 16 of the UEFA Cup this season. Who is your favourite player in the current squad and why, and also of all time?

It would have to be the 18yo lad that is destined to become a household name everywhere soon. Panagiotis Retsos (https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/nintchdbpict000279797487.jpg?w=960&strip=all). I haven't been looking forward to the matches just to watch one player for a very long time.

It is hard to choose an all time favourite. I'd go for Predrag Djordjevic (https://i.ytimg.com/vi/pprZ3e_3-OM/maxresdefault.jpg), a real legend.

You would have been in England in 2004 when Greece won the Euros. Can you remember where you watched the final and what are your thoughts about how they managed to achieve this?

I was actually in Greece at the time. I went out to a pub to watch the game on Sunday evening, then the next time that I slept again was on the Tuesday night. The 48 hours in between are a blur.

It was not a surprise to me that Greece did well. The core of the team was drawn from 2 generations of experienced & talented players that did extremely well as U19s & U21s. A good manager, a bit of luck and the fact so many top nations were not playing well, turned what would be a pretty good tournament into a historic one.

Please could you provide us with a link to utube, vimeo or soundcloud to any music that you'd like your fellow managers to appreciate?

A bit of rock opera
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDmeMjsV35U&list=PLaw3NNNcsCX0IDcDmDdz_Q6UEsAQf4DVk&index=16)

You are running your 2nd team in Greece, Nossolo (113722). This team, like your primary team, has an excellent coach with several promising looking English NT prospects. Please tell us about these guys and your plans for them, as well as the meaning behind the team name?

The plan was originally to train more for England U20, but I then changed and decided to train forwards for the NT when Siegler (398961678) & Dhoni (399004360) became available as a result of another 2nd team closing down (due to spike on supporter prices).

I have 2 more forwards, one winger & one CD, all prospects for the NT. I am training as long as it suits the training plan of the fwds hoping to find a team that can take them towards the NT when I have to sell them.

As for the name, it is an anagram of where I come from in Greece.

The latest evolution of hattrick has been announced, and will include some interesting changes to specialities and to their effect and contribution. What are your thoughts about all of this, and do you think it will be make the game more fun to play?

There is hope for HT judging from the latest developments. I am not talking about the changes per se, but for the fact that they announced it 2 seasons ahead of implementation in order to involve the community & to ask our opinion. That in itself is a winner, regardless of what the changes will be.

There's a hattrick social event taking place in London at the end of the season. Is there any chance you might make a surprise appearance?

I think I am going to be away (not for the first time) when it takes place. I was planning to make an appearance on the last one but it did not work out. Maybe next time.