Welcome back to my Football Manager 2021 journeyman series… where Shama Deadman’s fortunes have taken a turn for the better, for once!
In the previous chapter, Shama began his second season with Győr in the Hungarian second division. Results couldn’t have gone much better, and ETO are already on course for promotion, but can they keep up the good work? Let’s find out…
NOVEMBER & DECEMBER 2026
To recap, Győr had made a fantastic start to the NB II season, sitting seven points clear in the promotion places after 15 matches. However, after losing our unbeaten start to Debrecen in our most recent league fixture, had we also lost our momentum?
I think that answers that question! We immediately picked back up from before the Debrecen defeat, and began another winning streak!
Mind you, we did ride our luck against Szolnok. Their stubborn defence withstood several attempts on goal before we eventually beat them 2-0. Our first goal was this fluke cross-shot from winger Bálint Szabó, and the second was a late Goran Todorović penalty.
Our next match at Tatabánya was delicately poised at half-time, with us only 1-0 up thanks to an early Cyril Nebo strike. Then, shortly after the restart, Tatabánya’s left-winger (who’s actually a centre-half!) was sent off for a stupidly reckless challenge on our left-back Simão Rocha. That red card allowed us to dominate the second half and coast to a 3-0 victory.
Rocha avoided serious injury in that tackle, but he hurt his foot in training a few days later, putting him out of our next match. Mind you, it was ‘only’ at home to Csákvár, who were bottom of the table with no wins and only four points to their name. What could possibly go wrong?
Quite a lot, as it turned out! Our defence probably took Csákvár a bit too lightly, as they went 1-0 and 2-1 up, though winger János Géringer and centre-half Américo Pereira got us back level each time. Pereira’s equaliser came in the 82nd minute, and when Géringer blasted in our third goal just a couple of minutes later, it looked like our comeback was complete.
But no, there was still work to do. Substitute left-back Áron Domonyi – playing just his second senior game for Győr – got sent off in the 89th minute after two late bookings. We had to play ultra-cautiously in stoppage time – with even captain Norbert Kundrák dropping out of attack to fill in at left-back – and see off some late Csákvár attacks before somehow securing a 3-2 win! That was far too close for comfort!
After that major scare, we again came close to dropping points against local rivals Gyirmót. First-half goals from Géringer and our other teenage winger Norbert László gave us a two-goal lead, but we struggled to kill the game off before our hosts threatened a fightback in the closing stages.
That was our fourth win in a row, but it didn’t feel like it. I threw my first water bottles at the players this season and warned them to get their act together.
And so they did. A straightforward 2-0 home win over Budaörs was followed by a classy performance at Soroksár. Géringer scored his fifth goal in as many games, and Nebo his 14th goal of the season. Though Soroksár hit back late on, a last-gasp Rocha free-kick put the result beyond doubt – and put us in a very strong position as the winter break loomed!
We were already 14 points clear in the promotion places, as were Debrecen, with whom we were locked in a fierce battle for top spot. With the teams level on points, wins and goal difference, we had the edge over ‘Loki’ on goals scored.
To be honest, I wasn’t that bothered about a title race. I just wanted us to secure promotion – and unless we had a catastrophic second-half collapse, that looked very likely!
JANUARY 2027
We had a very pleasant winter break – and a very quiet one, with no need to significantly improve the squad or sell anybody. Holding midfielder Ivan Kalyuzhnyi got antsy for a couple of months after I refused to give him a new contract, but the Ukrainian calmed down and agreed to stay… for the time being.
However, Bálint Szabó would soon be leaving us. The creative winger had provided five goals and six assists so far this season, and with his contract expiring in the summer, he was drawing plenty of interest from other NB II clubs.
Though I was happy to keep Szabó, he knew that his only future here was as a backup to the younger, more exciting Géringer. At 26, he wanted to be playing regular first-team football, so he declined our offer and decided to join Dorog in the summer.
I completely understood Bálint’s decision to leave ETO Park after six years as a squad player. I just hoped he would finish his Győr career by helping us to promotion – and maybe even a league championship too.
After several weeks off, we returned to action with three friendly matches. Nebo’s brace helped us comfortably beat Hatvan, but just four days later, we suffered a disappointing home loss to Austrian second-division side Grazer AK. Our defence just switched off completely, and we needed goals from Nebo and Kundrák to keep the scoreline respectable.
Our next result was definitely not respectable, as we put NINE goals past local amateurs Pannonhalma without reply. 16-year-old Dániel Juhász had an incredible first half, setting up two goals before netting a hat-trick! We were now ready to return to competitive action in the Magyar Kupa, with everybody fit and raring to go…
…until our backup right-back Attila Osváth tore his ACL and was ruled out for two months. That left us light on cover for our regular starter Attila Szabados. The next men in line were 19-year-old Tibor Fehér (who’s better as a centre-back) and 18-year-old Lajos Lipcsei (who’s played just one league game).
Osváth’s experience was missed in that Magyar Kupa game, that was for sure. Budafok might have been bottom of the NB I, but they made a blistering start with two goals in the first nine minutes. Our confidence collapsed, and we never recovered. Out of the cup at Round 3 again.
Four days after our first competitive home defeat this season, we then suffered another as our league campaign resumed against Szeged-GA. We lost our way after Nebo scored an early opener, with Vutsov conceding from all three of Szeged’s shots on target. Though László had pulled us level after we fell 2-1 behind, we conceded an 88th-minute penalty to end a run of 13 straight home league wins.
3rd-placed ZTE also slipped up on their first game back, so we still had a 14-point lead on them… but Debrecen had now taken top spot after an easy 3-1 win over Kazincbarcika. Was this the start of a dreaded collapse?
FEBRUARY 2027
So… Kalyuzhnyi did leave after all! The last straw was the cup loss against Budafok, where he made a shaky start and posted a 6.3 match rating. Not exactly Ivan the Terrible, but still very poor.
I fined Kalyuzhnyi for his performance, but he didn’t take it well and started complaining to his team-mates. He wasn’t a regular starter anymore (he’d played just seven league games this season, averaging 6.87), so we agreed that it was time for him to move on.
Ivan soon made the short journey across the city to Gyirmót for £150,000. I spent a tenth of that on his replacement.
With Kalyuzhnyi gone, we needed a more experienced head in midfield – and Karlo Muhar looks like a shrewd short-term buy. Costing us just £15,000 from Debrecen, the 31-year-old Croat is a committed and energetic ball-winner who also has good leadership qualities. Muhar should be a reassuring presence in the middle of the park as we look to rubber-stamp our place in next season’s NB I.
After our January blues, February started with a much more impressive win over Paks. This match was a battle of the 4-3-3s, but their narrow version with three centre-forwards was trounced by our wider, counter-attacking version.
A 25-yard screamer from midfielder Lars Dendoncker and a Géringer double put us 3-0 ahead before we gave away another penalty, which could have turned the tide. Thankfully, Nebo sealed victory 15 minutes from time with yet another goal.
Cyril had a rare off day the following weekend, but it didn’t matter, as Géringer and Kundrák earned us an unconvincing 2-0 win over Pécs. Things didn’t go so well for Todorović, who came off with a hamstring strain and would be out for a few weeks.
Having reverted to our usual 4-4-2 for that home win, the 4-3-3 returned when we faced a tricky away game against Szentlőrinc. And so it proved, as we were shut out in the league for the first time since October. Just like in that match against Debrecen, our hosts scored a late winner just as it looked like we were heading for a goalless draw.
With 3rd-placed Tatabánya cutting our advantage on them down to ‘just’ 11 points, ETO fans could be excused for getting quite anxious. Our next match was at home to bottom side Kazincbarcika. You know how this goes, right?
That’s right… we SMASHED THEM. A Rocha free-kick and another Nebo brace made light work of Barcika, and we could have won by even more had József Windecker not had a late penalty saved. Windecker’s physical abilities had declined dramatically over recent months, and it felt like the beginning of the end for our 34-year-old midfield destroyer.
Debrecen might have had daylight in the title race, but at least our promotion charge was back on track. 13 points clear, 12 games to play…
MARCH 2027
A new month began with another comfortable win, as we put FIVE past Kecskeméti! Nebo helped himself to another brace, with a 20th goal of the campaign beating his tally from last term. We also saw a first goal this season from our backup left-winger Ervin Taha, who was playing up front as Kundrák was injured and Todorović was still working his way back to fitness.
We led 4-0 at half-time, so I gave opportunities to a couple of emerging talents in our Under-19s squad. 18-year-old winger Aleksandar Beljin had an unforgettable senior debut, scoring our fifth goal just a minute after coming on. I also looked at 16-year-old Roland Boros, who has some solid attributes for a ball-winning midfielder and has consistently impressed in training recently.
With those last two wins, we increased our lead over 3rd place from 11 points to 16. Promotion was getting closer… but we couldn’t afford to lose focus, as our next game at Nyíregyháza showed.
This match saw the teams share four goals, all scored within the first 26 minutes. A fit-again Todorović scored a penalty after just six minutes, but his hesitancy on the ball allowed Szpari to launch an equalising counter-attack seven minutes later. Nebo quickly restored our lead, only for us to lose it with some shocking set-piece defending…
What is it with Svetoslav Vutsov?! I know he’s kept 11 clean sheets in 26 games, but some of the decisions our goalkeeper makes are truly mind-boggling! I don’t think Kadú at Espinho would have charged recklessly off his line like that. Heck, even Harry Churchill at Cambrian & Clydach would have done a better job!
Our defence disgraced themselves again when we hosted 15th-placed Ajka. A long punt from their goalkeeper sent the striker clear through, the shot easily beat Vutsov, and that was that. What a load of rubbish.
And so, with nine games to go, this is how the table looks. The championship has probably gone to Debrecen, who’ve won 10 of their last 11 games. Even automatic promotion is starting to look a little uncertain for us, as although we still hold a 14-point lead over ZTE in 3rd, our ropey recent form doesn’t inspire me. We could still blow this!
But before I start turning into Private Frazer from “Dad’s Army”, let’s end this chapter on an optimistic note. Our youth intake’s just come through, and we have every reason to be excited about a couple of prospects in particular.
We’ve got a few talented wingers coming through, and Csaba Katona might be the best of them. He’s quick, has very good technique, and possesses plenty of flair. Csaba is about as strong as a twiglet, though, so he’ll need to beef up before I think about regularly throwing him in with the big boys.
Meanwhile, József Varga looks like he could be a very talented playmaker in a few years’ time. The diminutive midfielder already has an impressive first touch and shows good creative instinct. Dare I call him the Hungarian Xavi? Oops, too late!
Nine games to go. Győr need just 14 more points, and they will be in the top flight! Can they secure promotion, or will Shama’s dream turn into a nightmare?
Do not miss the next chapter on Monday. It’s a big one!
Thanks for reading!
Fuller FM 
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