Ryu's player recommendation didn't satisfy me. It seems like I have to find it myself. According to the J2 league rules, the maximum number of players a club can bring is 15 players. The 15 players consist of 10 local players and 5 foreign players. Okay, I'll start with the foreign players.
Currently, many clubs buy foreign players who play as strikers, but I think it's better if we buy foreign players who play as goalkeepers. I made this decision because Asian players don't have the same height as European or African players, while in the goalkeeper position, a minimum height of 6.25 ft is required. I searched for many names for it and it turned out that the price of goalkeepers was quite high, I think this will reduce the club's budget for other players. So, I decided to look for European goalkeepers who are about to retire and are free on the transfer market.
I remember when I was still at AC Milan, in the last season of the Italian league, the goalkeeper who was very difficult for me to face was Rui Patrício, a goalkeeper from Portugal who played for Atalanta. He retired at the age of 37 in the same year I retired. No need to use an intermediary, as one of the rival teams in the Italian league, I had time to exchange jerseys and befriend him on Instagram.
"Rui, do you still remember me?", I wrote that short message on Instagram.
Not long after that, he replied of course he still remembers me.
"Rui, Let's get straight to the point, I just bought a football club, do you want to be our goalkeeper?", I asked.
He wanted to, but I asked again about his salary. After much discussion, we agreed on a salary of 1 million euros with the additional condition of getting a place as the main goalkeeper and as captain. Of course this is a profitable thing, and I still have a lot of money at the moment, around 41.3 billion yen.
Moving on to the center back position, it seems like I will need three players in this position. Two local players and one foreign player. For local players, I will invest in young players with cheaper salaries so that the club's operations are not burdened. I found the name Keito Omori from Fujieda MYFC, 21 years old, left footed with a height of 6.2 ft and Kaito Fujii from Fagiano Okayama, 21 years old too, with a right foot and a height of 5.67 ft. Although Kaito Fujii is relatively short for his position, but I see his potential in reading the flow of the game so I think his role will be quite crucial in the team compared to Keito Omori.
Lastly, in the center back position, I will buy a player from the Dutch league. Lately I often watch the Dutch league and am interested in one player, namely Mees Hilgers. With a height of around 6.25 ft and experience defending at the Dutch league level, I am sure Mees will be able to dominate the Ehime FC defense line. I bought him from FC Twente with a fairly fantastic price, namely 20 million euros so that he would play in this Japanese league.
Since I will be playing with the 433 formation, players are needed for the right back and left back positions. For the right back, I have decided to sign a local player named Keigo Tsunemoto who is starting his career in the Swiss league, I heard that he is often benched there so the price is not expensive for his good quality. And for the left back position, I will buy Arhan, one of the foreign players from Indonesia who is currently playing for Bangkok United in the Thai league. One reason why I bought him is because he is famous for his long throws and that is very useful if you have a tall striker.
"Next, I will choose midfielder and striker.", I said.
To be continued...