Subject: [NT] News

Thanks for the heads up, Seca.

I can't see myself being able to make room for Dyers in my training squad, and I've a feeling Khambule will cost more than I can raise. Will watch for him though.
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Timothy Dyers is now transfer listed.

Superstar midfielder Samuel Mabizela is transfer listed. Often seen as a winger, his defense makes him really flexible. Can push him back into midfield, or play him off the line so he can mess with defenders. Given his age, his training window is closed. Still, would be a nice addition for almost any squad. :)

22 yr defender prospect Hilton Malatsi is also Tl'd. Pace is done. Needs more defending, and some work on secondary skills. Given his age and current skill set, he's got a pretty bright NT future IMO.

hmm Hilton looks a real star.
Mbezella now he is a legend

Hilton is one of mine that I sold on after training him for a couple seasons. His current coach has taken his pace from brilliant to divine and got pops in technique and playmaker.

defintly worth taking a look at

I have signed the team up for the "mini-WC" - the unofficial tournament for those who didn't make the big dance.

Great to hear!

We're usually quite competitive in that tournament.
I recall losing to a late goal against Uruguay in the QF before they went on to win the trophy.

Good luck!

Well, tbh, competing in that tournament will be far more interesting then playing in the WC. The WC would have been an exercise in damage control, and would have meant the team would be in ranking-point recovery mode for much of the season. This way, the games will be better, and the team ranking should come out a little ahead having participated.

I'm not saying I didn't want to go into the WC. The goal is always to dance in the big dance, even if you get your toes stepped on. But there is a silver lining. :)

43 South Africa 1614.56
44 Pilipinas 1600.00
Nicaragua 1600.00
Prathet Thai 1600.00

Just illustrates again how important the 1600 ranking point level is (w/r to the addition of new NTs). Not as much this season, but in a qualification season those 14.56 points make the difference between some chance and no chance of making the big dance.

Wanted to note a few players on the TL. 26 yr midfielder Lesley Kubheka is listed. I will be keeping an eye on him myself ... training tech at the moment, and a couple levels would help his game.

More important is defender Hilton Malatsi. He's had some growing pains this season, but he's still a young star, and his training needs to continue.
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I'm tracking Malatsi's auction. He was one of mine that I sold off 3 seasons back. I'm surprised at how well he's developed as he came through my academy with a talent of 5, though that was only 1 pop.

The problem is that his pace is maxed and I was going to work on that next. However, I was looking at working on playmaking after pace, so perhaps I could do that first. Would you say that Malatsi really need more defending training before the secondaries? I'm not going to be working on that much longer. The other issue then becomes who to drop from my squad....more headaches. ;)

I'm trying to get the most out of my older guys, but my focus must remain on Zulu. He's by far the best prospect I've ever had. Right now, pace (solid) and playmaking (average) are his weakest skills.

I've always done something kinda similar to what you're doing - look at my best prospect and kinda let him guide the training regime. :)

I agree it's a little unfortunate Malatsi's pace has been maxed at a (relatively) young age. It does limit the teams that will be interested, and may well mean some training weeks are wasted on him. He still has two paths open to him - if his tackling isn't trained anymore, but midfield skills are hit hard he could be nice defensive midfielder (tho IMO superdivine pace is a little overkill for a DM). The other option is to bring his tackling up a couple of levels, along with padding the midfield skills some.

The second option is probably the better use of him (IMO, due to his great pace). Solid DMs are often hard players to come by, so I wouldn't discourage training him down that path. South Africa does have a little more depth at the DM position then many NTs do.

Should also add that the NT roster will be culled in the next week or two. I want to get the numbers down to the point where the next manager has some freedom to make some moves (there are some nice players coming up from the juniors that should get a chance).

There are A LOT of players that will be going. I don't expect I will be messaging everyone in advance. So if you have an NT player and you wish to sell him as a NT player take a look at him - if he hasn't been playing much, it's fairly likely he will be dropped.

Good news. It looks like Malatsi's buyer plans to train him. Looks like defence right now.

EDIT: The manager is still busy with pace but will switch to defending during next season.
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