Gaming Matters: FIFA16 Wimbledon Career Season 2

So after winning the League Two title I was lucky to keep most of the same team as a number of key players were on two year loans. We kept Lukas Klostermann, Michael Heylen, Brendan Galloway, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Nathaniel Chalobah, Demarai Gray and Ezequiel Ponce for a second season. Although Sheyi Ojo was on a one year loan last season we managed to get him back for a two season loan making it three in total. Other key loans were on the right wing where Bayern Munich's Julian Green and Liverpool's Ryan Kent came on loan. Back in January we'd agreed pre-contract deals for Callum Morris, Mamadou Bagayoko and Gary Coulibaly to strengthen the defence.

In the league our record was 29 wins, 12 draws and 5 losses with 84 goals scored and 40 conceded. We won the League One title but also had a good run in all three domestic cups which led to a very busy January. We took Middlesborough to a replay and extra time in the fourth round of the FA Cup before losing on penalties. The League Cup campaign went even better and we got to the two leg semi-final against Manchester United having beaten Queens Park Rangers, Newcastle United, Birmingham City and Middlesbrough on the way. A fantastic result at Old Trafford saw us take a 2-1 lead into the second leg but then our key centre back Sergio Mancini was sent off early in the match and that turned the tide completely. United took the lead to level the tie on aggregate before half time and were all over us in the second half, adding two more goals to deny us a place in the final. We did get to Wembley in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy however and faced bitter rivals MK Dons. Although both teams are a 78 mile drive apart it was MK Dons that took over the old Wimbledon team and re-located to Milton Keynes and AFC Wimbledon were then formed in 2002. Brendan Galloway gave us the lead but in the end we lost 2-1 and didn't lift any trophy other than the League One title.

Start of Season Sales

James Shea – GK – 25yo – England – 66 – Angers (France) - £400k

George Francomb – RM/CM – 25yo – England – 65 – Coventry City - £375k

Lyle Taylor – ST – 27yo – Montserrat – 65 – Blackburn Rovers - £400k

Barry Fuller – RB/CB – 32yo – England – 61 – Barnet - £80k

Egli Kaja – CAM/CM – 19yo – Albania – 55 – Morecambe - £50k

Daniel Gallagher – CM/CDM – 19yo – England – 54 – Bray Wanderers - £50k

George Pilbeam – RB – 20yo – England – 54 – Galway United - £60k

Start of Season Purchases/Loans

Salomon Libman – GK – 32yo – Peru – 66 – Cesar Vallejo (Peru) – Free transfer

Gary Coulibaly – CB/CDM – 31yo – France – 65 – Beveren (Belgium) – Free transfer

Callum Morris – CB – 27yo – Ireland – 66 – Dunde United – Free transfer

Mamadou Bagayoko – RB – 27yo – Ivory Coast – 66 – St Truiden (France) – Free transfer

Samed Yesil – ST/CF – 22yo – Germany – 69 – Liverpool – Loan

Alban Lafont – GK – 18yo – France – 69 – Toulouse – Loan

Dino Ndlovu – ST/CF/CAM – 27yo – South Africa – 70 – Rochdale – Free transfer

Julian Green – RM/LM/ST – 21yo – USA – 71 – Bayern Munich – Loan

Angelino – LB – 20yo – Spain – 72 – Manchester City – Loan

Ryan Kent – RM/LM/CAM – 20yo – England – 72 – Liverpool – Loan

Allan Saint-Maximin – ST/LM – 20yo – France – 72 – Monaco - Loan

Loans Out

Anton Vall – GK – 19yo – Sweden – 65 – Reading

Jackson Solari – CDM/CB – 17yo – Australia – 63 – Dagenham & Redbridge

Callum Wilson – RB/RWB – 19yo – England – 59 – Galway United

Yasser Al Sulaiheem – LM/CM – 18yo – Saudi Arabia – 55 - Gillingham

January Sales

Jake Reeves – CM – 23yo – England – 68 – Leeds United - £725k

Salomon Libman – GK – 32yo – Peru – 66 – Doncaster Rovers - £325k

Jon Meades – LB/CM/LM – 25yo – Wales – 65 – Sheffield United - £425k

Connor Smith – RM/CM – 23yo – Ireland – 64 – Coventry City - £400k

Tom Elliott – ST – 26yo – England – 61 – Doncaster Rovers - £200k

Callum Kennedy – LB – 28yo – England – 61 – Doncaster Rovers - £130k

January Purchases/Loans

Pedro Quinonez – CDM/CM – 31yo – Ecuador – 70 – Emelec (Ecuador) – Free transfer

Youth Team Promotions

Wesam Al Saeed – LW/RM – 18yo – Saudi Arabia - 53

Jason Petratos – LB/RB – 18yo – Australia – 53

Dae Joo Moon – RB/CB – 17yo – South Korea – 55

Adam Blackwood – GK – 18yo – England – 57

Jarrett Molyneux – RW/LW – 17yo – England – 60

Suk Won Bae – CAM/CM – 19yo – South Korea – 61

Abdullah Al Montasheri – CAM/CM – 16yo – Saudi Arabia - 62

Goalkeepers

Alban Lafont – 18yo – France – 69 – 29/0 – 2/0 – 31/0

Salomon Libman – 32yo – Peru – 66 – 16/0 – 15/0 – 31/0

Both these goalkeepers had half a season each really. Libman was signed from unattached on a free contract and became the natural number one with on loan French keeper Lafont as back-up. When I received a good offer for Libman in January though considering his age and the relative profit I would make it was an easy decision to sell him for £325k and promote Lafont to number one.

Right Backs

Lukas Klostermann – 20yo – Germany – 73 – 25/2 – 10/0 – 35/2 = 74/2

Mamdou Bagayoko – 27yo – Ivory Coast – 66 – 14/0 – 7/1 – 21/1

Dae Joo Moon – 17yo – South Korea – 55 – 9/0 – 0/0 – 9/0

Klostermann stayed for his second season on loan from Red Bull Leipzig as the main choice for right back and scored two goals in the league. Ivory Coast international Bagayoko was adequate back up but lacked any pace and certainly didn't challenge the German. Moon played in league games when I was resting the other two for crucial cup games and performed much better than expected for his rating of 55.

Left Backs

Brendan Galloway – 21yo – England – 74 – 22/0 – 12/1 – 34/1 = 72/3

Angelino – 20yo – Spain – 72 – 14/0 – 3/0 – 17/0

Jon Meades – 25yo – Wales – 65 – 9/0 – 2/0 – 11/0 = 31/1

Jason Petratos – 18yo – Australia – 53 – 3/0 – 0/0 – 3/0

As with Klostermann at right back I kept Galloway for a second season on loan and he was one of the best players. His only goal came in the JPT final but he joined in many attacks. Angelino came for the first of two years from Manchester City showing not only was he good cover for Galloway but also would be good next season when the English defender returned to Everton. Meades played a few games before joining Sheffield United and Australian full back Jason 'potatoes' Petratos made his debut from the youth team and played in three league games.

Centre Backs

Michael Heylen – 23yo – Belgium – 72 – 24/0 – 13/1 – 37/1 = 77/1

Sergio Mancini – 18yo – Italy – 71 – 29/1 – 12/0 – 41/1 = 44/1

Callum Morris – 27yo – Ireland – 66 – 15/1 – 2/0 – 17/1

Gary Coulibaly – 31yo – France – 65 – 16/0 – 6/0 – 22/0

Will Nightingale – 21yo – England – 61 – 11/1 – 2/0 – 13/1

Heylen continued on loan from Anderlecht as captain and formed a great partnership with Mancini as the young Italian developed at a fantastic rate. In just 12 months Mancini had gone from a 60 rating to a 71 and he was still only 18 years old. His timing in the tackle was sometimes lacking and the League Cup semi against United was not his only red card but he had fantastic pace and strength. Both Morris and Coulibaly joined for free on pre-contracts in the summer but neither pushed for a regular starting place, both lacking pace. I was impressed with Nightingale who was back with the squad after spending last season on loan at Crewe Alexandra towards the end of the season he was my third choice.

Central Midfielders

Jake Reeves – 23yo – England – 68 – 12/1 – 7/2 – 19/3 = 60/7

Ruben Loftus-Cheek – 21yo – England – 73 – 27/1 – 12/0 – 39/1 = 74/5

Nathaniel Chalobah – 22yo – England – 73 – 24/6 – 10/2 – 34/8 = 69/12

Christian Toonga – 19yo – England – 62 – 10/0 – 5/0 – 15/0 = 37/5

Pedro Quinonez – 31yo – Ecuador – 70 – 23/2 – 8/0 – 31/2

Abdullah Al Montasheri – 16yo – Saudi Arabia – 62 – 2/0 – 0/0 – 2/0

Emerson Hyndman – 21yo – USA – 69 – 19/2 – 5/0 – 24/2 = 35/3 Suk Won Bae – 19yo – South Korea – 61 – 9/0 – 1/0 – 10/0

Omar Heaton – 18yo – England – 61 – 9/0 – 1/0 – 10/0 = 11/0

Jake Conlon – 18yo – England – 54 – 2/0 – 0/0 – 2/0

As with 2015/16 we used ten central midfielders across the course of the season. Loftus-Cheek and Chalobah were naturally the main choices and both had great seasons but Hyndman, on loan from Fulham still, was a fantastic back-up. Reeves left in January and was replaced by Quinonez who came for free from Emelec in his home country Ecuador. He was certainly strong enough to not only tackle well in a defensive role but carry the ball forward too and his performances eased any worries about next season without the Chelsea pair. Toonga didn't score any goals this time around and found the division harder to make an impression against. Four other youngsters played a handful of games with South Korean attacking midfielder the most impressive.

Right Midfielders

Andy Barcham – 30yo – England – 66 – 20/0 – 5/2 – 25/2 = 62/11

Connor Smith – 24yo – Ireland – 64 – 5/1 – 3/0 – 8/1 = 28/1

Ryan Kent – 20yo – England – 72 – 29/3 – 12/1 – 41/4

Julian Green – 21yo – USA – 71 – 22/2 – 11/1 – 33/3

Jarrett Molyneux – 17yo – England – 60 – 6/0 – 0/0 – 6/0

The on loan right wingers Kent (Liverpool) and Green (Bayern Munich) really had equal status in the team with one often replacing the other during a match. Barcham was still with the team and covered either wing when the better loanees were being rested. Youth player Molyneux had plenty of pace but lacked the skills to be of regular use. Smith left for Coventry City in January after a handful of games.

Left Midfielders

Demarai Gray – 20yo – England – 75 – 25/8 – 13/2 – 38/10 = 75/20

Sheyi Ojo – 19yo – England – 69 – 23/4 – 5/4 – 28/8 = 60/7

Wesam Al Saeed – 18yo – Saudi Arabia – 53 – 2/0 – 0/0 – 2/0

Gray was the team's highest rated player, most valuable player and is now third on overall appearances behind Ponce and Heylen but it was Ojo that made the highlights reel most often. While Gray would join some of the highest rated players at the club in departing at the end of the season Ojo would stay on for another season with a chance to make the left wing spot his own. Barcham of course covered for the two wingers on the left as well as the right and young Saudi player Al Saeed made two league appearances.

Strikers

Ezequiel Ponce – 20yo – Argentina – 70 – 27/7 – 12/2 – 39/9 = 80/24

Lyle Taylor – 27yo – Montserrat – 65 – 1/0 – 0/0 – 1/0 = 37/9

Allan Saint-Maximin – 20yo – France – 72 – 24/10 – 12/6 – 36/16

Tom Elliott – 26yo – England – 61 – 1/0 – 0/0 – 1/0 = 30/9

Juan Carlos Arce – 32yo – Bolivia – 65 – 22/5 – 6/1 – 28/6 = 28/6

Dino Ndlovu – 27yo – South Africa – 70 – 20/7 – 6/3 – 26/10

Samed Yesil – 22yo – Germany – 69 – 25/16 – 12/10 – 37/26

Adebayo Azeez – 23yo – England – 60 – 11/3 – 2/0 – 13/3

While season one belonged to Ponce with his 15 goals in 41 games it was certainly Yesil that owned season two. The Liverpool loanee (joining team-mates Ojo and Kent at Wimbledon) struck 16 goals in the league alone and added 10 more in the cups to finish with 26 goals in 37 games. That's a strike rate of 70% which is easily the best we've seen so far as Ponce's first season was only 37%. Yesil was a great forward who scored not only in the league but was devastating in the cups with 10 goals in 12 games on the way to the League Cup semi-final legs with Manchester United and the JPT final with MK Dons. Ponce would rotate both starting games and coming off the bench as we had five strikers across the season who player more than twenty games. Ponce actually benefited from being third choice by playing the most games with 27 league appearances followed by Yesil 25, Saint-Maximin 24, Arce 22 and Ndlovu with 20. With Yesil, Ponce and Saint-Maximin being preferred for important cup games it gave Arce and Ndlovu the chance to get some league games in and Ndlovu was a pleasant surprise for a free bargain. The one to watch out for was clearly Saint-Maximin though as his outstanding pace can beat any defender and he would be lethal once his shooting skills are perfected. Last season's strikers Taylor and Elliott made one appearance apiece in one of the cups before departing in the August window. Azeez was out on loan last season at Stevenage so it was my first chance to utilise him and in his handful of appearances he never let us down. He won two vital penalties in the season which feature in the YouTube highlights – against Gillingham at the end of the match which helped us equalise for a crucial point and against Middlesbrough in the FA Cup replay extra time which led to us levelling at 3-3 and going to penalties (where we then lost).

Top 10 Appearances

1 = Ryan Kent – RM – 41

1 = Sergio Mancini – CB – 41

3 = Ruben Loftus-Cheek – CM – 39

3 = Ezequiel Ponce – ST – 39

5 – Demarai Gray – LM – 38

6 = Michael Heylen – CB – 37

6 = Samed Yesil – ST – 37

8 – Allan Saint-Maximin – ST – 36

9 – Lukas Klostermann – RB – 35

10 = Brendan Galloway – LB – 34

10 = Nathaniel Chalobah – CM – 34

Top 10 Appearances All-Time

1 – Ezequiel Ponce – ST – 80

2 – Michael Heylen – CB – 77

3 – Demarai Gray – LM – 75

4 = Ruben Loftus-Cheek – CM – 74

4 = Lukas Klostermann – RB – 74

6 – Brendan Galloway – LB – 72

7 – Nathaniel Chalobah – CM – 69

8 – Andy Barcham – RM – 62

9 – Sheyi Ojo – LM – 61

10 – Jake Reeves – CM - 60

Top 10 Scorers

1 – Samed Yesil – ST – 26

2 – Allan Saint-Maximin – ST – 16

3 = Demarai Gray – LM – 10

3 = Dino Ndlovu – ST – 10

5 – Ezequiel Ponce – ST – 9

6 = Nathaniel Chalobah – CM – 8

6 = Sheyi Ojo – LM – 8

8 – Juan Carlos Arce – ST – 6

9 – Ryan Kent – RM – 4

10 = Jake Reeves – CM – 3

10 = Julian Green – RM – 3

10 = Adebayo Azeez – ST – 3

Top 10 Scorers All-Time

1 – Samed Yesil – ST – 26

2 – Ezequiel Ponce – ST – 24

3 – Demarai Gray – LM – 20

4 – Allan Saint-Maximin – ST – 16

5 – Sheyi Ojo – LM – 14

6 – Nathaniel Chalobah – CM – 12

7 – Andy Barcham – RM – 11

8 – Dino Ndlovu – ST – 10

9 = Lyle Taylor – ST – 9

9 = Tom Elliott – ST – 9

Top 5 Strike Rates

1 – Samed Yesil – ST – 70% (26 in 37)

2 – Allan Saint-Maximin – ST – 44% (16 in 36)

3 – Dino Ndlovu – ST – 38% (10 in 26)

4 – Sheyi Ojo – LM – 29% (8 in 28) 5 – Demarai Gray – LM – 26% (10 in 38)

Top 5 Strike Rates All Time

1 - Samed Yesil – ST – 70% (26 in 37)

2 – Allan Saint-Maximin – ST – 44% (16 in 36)

3 - Dino Ndlovu – ST – 38% (10 in 26)

4 = Ezequiel Ponce – ST – 30% (24 in 80)

4 = Tom Elliott – ST – 30% (9 in 30)

Top 5 Rated Players Overall

1 - Demarai Gray – LM – 75

2 – Brendan Galloway – LB – 74

3 = Nathaniel Chalobah – CM – 73

3 = Ruben Loftus-Cheek – CM – 73

3 = Lukas Klostermann – RB - 73

Top 5 Rated Players (no loans)

1 – Sergio Mancini – CB – 71

2 = Dino Ndlovu – ST – 70

2 = Pedro Quinonez – CM – 70

4 – Jake Reeves – CM – 68

5 = Andy Barcham – RM – 66

5 = Mamadou Bagayoko – RB - 66

5 = Callum Morris – CB - 66

5 = Salomon Libman – GK - 66

Top 5 Valued Players Overall

1 – Demarai Gray – LM - £4.1m

2 = Brendan Galloway – LB - £2.9m

2 = Ruben Loftus-Cheek – CM - £2.9m

4 – Nathaniel Chalobah – CM - £2.8m

5 – Lukas Klostermann – RB - £2.5m

Top 5 Valued Players (no loans)

1 – Sergio Mancini – CB – £2.3m

2 – Dino Ndlovu – ST - £925k

3 – Jake Reeves – CM - £700k

4 – Pedro Quinonez – CM - £625k

5 – Jackson Solari – CM - £450k

YouTube Videos

PLAY You always want to get off to a good start to the season and this opening day match away to Shrewsbury Town was heading for a reasonable point for 0-0 until Arce and Yesil worked some magic between them. Yesil got the ball from Ojo on the half way line and passed to Arce before continuing a charging run for the box. The Bolivian striker managed to just find him with a pass and following a jink past the Shewsbury centre back he fired in for a 1-0 win.

PLAY Jake Reeves scores first away to QPR in the League Cup. QPR are passing the ball around at the back in the second half but when Young passes inside to Samba Diakite the Malian midfielder allows the ball to run past him to get it onto his right foot. Reeves is too quick for him and seizes his opportunity to break into the box and score into the top left corner.

PLAY A typical Yesil goal as the German striker equalises against Scunthorpe United in first half injury time. Reeves wins the ball back in midfield and gives it to Yesil on the half way line. A bit like his Shrewsbury goal above he goes on a run, feeds another player – this time Green to his right – and charges for the box. Green finds him beautifully and the best part of this goal is his turn past Wiseman before shooting.

PLAY The first of two featured goals from the League Cup win over Newcastle United. Kent takes a short corner to Gray who dribbles back before finding Hyndman with a pass into the box. The American quickly squares the ball to Chalobah who touches the ball away from Lamine Sane (Newcastle bought the Senegalese centre back from Bordeaux) and fires the ball past Karl Darlow in the Newcastle goal.

PLAY The match was 2-2 at the end of normal time and this was the winner six minutes into extra time. Great work by Gray to start the attack and he feeds the ball into an attacking run from Hyndman as the USA international is involved again. Sane was quick to come across and prevent a strike from distance but Hyndman was wise to him and turned inside and played to Azeez who was just onside. The striker fired first time on the run but Darlow managed a great save from point blank range. He only managed to parry the ball up and behind him though, the ball falling towards the far post with Barcham and Newcastle's Paul Dummett steaming in. Barcham beat the Welsh left back's lunge to volley home from a very tight angle for a goal worthy of winning the tie.

PLAY Quinonez scored his first goal for the club against Bradford City at home in the league. Galloway collected a clearance and passed inside to Reeves who gained another assist with his pass to his midfield partner who'd made a run forward. The Ecuador international beat both Greg Leigh and Stephen Darby in the box and fired past Galvan in the Bradford goal before he could react.

PLAY In the same match Allan Saint-Maximin adds an immediate second and once again it was Reeves with the assist. This time the midfielder won the ball from Billy Knott and spotted the French striker on the run. His throughball and Saint's pace left Darby and the Bradford back line stranded before a cool finish made it 2-0.

PLAY Ponce had just scored to level against Walsall when Chalobah scored this cracker. He initially won the ball from Adam Chambers but was tackled by Isaiah Osbourne before he could take a shot. Within seconds though he tackled Chambers again for the ball and this time he would not be denied. He ran for goal and got to the edge of the box before firing to the top right corner past a helpless Phillipine international keeper Neil Etheridge.

PLAY Luton were our big rivals for promotion last season but while we fought for the League One title they were battling relegation. This game was still 0-0 at the end of normal time and it took this stunner from Ndlovu to win the game. Hyndman passed the ball to the South African striker but it was no assist as the goal was all down to the scorer. On his route to goal Ndlovu either evaded or beat Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu, Nathan Doyle, Stephen O'Donnell, C Williams and Dan Potts before blasting past Liam Roberts (who Luton purchased from Walsall) to seal the vital win at the death.

PLAY If you like long range shots from centre backs they don't come much better than this. Working the ball from a short corner against Middlesbrough in the League Cup Green passed back to Loftus-Cheek who squared for the Wimbledon captain Heylen. The Belgian centre back took a touch before shooting from all of 25 yards to score the only goal in his two seasons at the club.

PLAY Arce does it all himself to put us 2-1 up in the league against Oxford United. Taking the ball from another short corner he beats Chris Maguire, Josh Ruffels and Paulo Retre. He then realises he won't beat Chey Dunkley but overbalances as he checks his run to shoot and his finish is then exquisite. As he falls to his right he shoots with his left foot and places the ball to the near post just out of the reach of Oxford's keeper Sam Slocombe. I can't say I was a fan of Arce which is why he didn't play too often but this was one of his best goals.

PLAY This is a great run and finish by Ojo but a lot of credit should go to Chalobah who makes a great diagonal run to drag a centre back wide and create a gulf of space for the left winger to run into. He gets the ball in his own half and goes past Colchester defender Richard Brindley like he isn't there. He then cuts between Tom Eastman and Joe Edwards to be through on goal. He keeps his composure to slot the ball past Sam Walker and seal a 4-2 win in the JPT.

PLAY Highlights of a cracking 3-2 win over Doncaster Rovers here as we took a 2-0 lead, slipped to 2-2 then won it right at the end. Even before Saint-Maximin opens the scoring he had other chances denied as did Chalobah with a great shot from distance causing Thorsten Stuckmann to make a great save. The German keeper couldn't do anything about Saint's opener or the second goal with great footwork by Gray. Richard Chaplow pulled one back for Doncaster and Nathan Tyson must have thought he'd salvaged a point with a great finish. Ojo had other ideas though and a great run ended with a left foot shot past Stuckmann with just two minutes left on the clock.

PLAY A real gift of a goal for Yesil in this League Cup tie against Birmingham. Gray's surging run to the by-line ends with a pass across goal to Yesil but either former Manchester United keeper Tomasz Kuszczak or defender Michael Morrison should have cleared the ball. Instead the two collide and the ball comes free to Yesil who fires home from three yards. What amuses me is the commentary from Alan Smith saying Yesil scores 'quite a few from these kind of distances' and 'it is a knack'. Yes Alan, scoring from three years is a real knack.

PLAY Another goal against Colchester United, this time in the JPT. Saint-Maximin plays a one-two with Chalobah to beat Alex Wynter and slot past Sam Walker for a 3-0 lead in the first half. It's simple, clinical and effective.

PLAY The determination of Azeez earned us a penalty to equalise just before full time in this league encounter with Gillingham. We were losing at home when Nightingale carried the ball out of defence and passed forward to Azeez. First he beats Emmanuel Osadebe, Bradley Dack and Rory Donnelly to come away with the ball and head for goal. With no real chance for a shot he heads for a gap on the right past Josh Wright but just as he gets into the box the Gillingham defender hacks him down. He's only booked for a bad foul when really it deserved a red. Arce scores the penalty with a shot which Stuart Nelson should have saved. Thankfully he didn't and we rescued a point.

PLAY Next up we have three clips from our F A Cup encounters with Middlesbrough. The first of which is in the original tie played at a snowy Riverside Stadium. It's a late equaliser by Saint-Maximin with a diving header past Ukranian keeper Anton Kanibolotskiy (purchased from Shakhtar Donetsk) after great work from Hyndman. The American midfielder is racking up the assists with a cross this time after beating George Friend and Daniel Ayala with some great skills.

PLAY Ojo then opens the scoring in the replay at home. Ponce plays a great through ball for the winger who dodges past Emilio Nsue and scores when one on one with Kanibolotskiy.

PLAY Following Ojo's goal we'd added a second through Bagayoko before half time. Middlesbrough had mounted a comeback and Adam Reach had equalised already before the Ivorian right back scored and then on the stroker of half time Argentine midfielder Mauro Diaz (a purchase from FC Dallas) equalised again. A goalless second half took the tie to extra time and the clip is the last five minutes of open play. Jordan Rhodes' great run exposes our defence as we'd pushed forward for a winner. His cross is headed against the woodwork by Rhys Williams but our luck then ran out as Uruguayan striker Cristhian Stuani beat Nightingale to head the ball in for what they thought was the winner. First Azeez went on a powerful run which took him past Nsue but Ayala was there to cover and cleared the ball which deflected off of Ojo for a Middlesbrough throw in. With one minute to go we won our own throw in and Smith threw to Ojo for one last roll of the dice. He played a great searching pass for Azeez just outside the box who turned and charged for goal. As he was about to shoot he was tackled by Nsue and the referee adjudged it to be a foul and a penalty (action replays are still not clear). Ojo placed the ball past Kanibolotskiy to send the match to penalties. Ironically we lost the tie in the penalty shoot out.

PLAY The greatest result of the season had to be the 2-1 win in the League Cup semi-final away to Manchester United. It must have delighted a Liverpool loanee, Samed Yesil, to score the opener but the creation was down to the pace and dribbling of Demarai Gray. The winger first beats Matteo Darmian then outpaces Morgan Schneiderlin for half the pitch to get into the box. Before Chris Smalling can stop him Gray squares the ball to Yesil whose shot beats his marker Daley Blind and Victor Valdes in the United goal.

PLAY I still say this is a ridiculously harsh red card and not only ruined the tie but killed our chances of beating United. When Wayne Rooney played the ball forward to Brazilian midfielder Andreas Pereira there was only Mancini between him and goal but he turned away from running at goal before the tackle came in. Then Mancini dives in but to me it doesn't look to be from behind or dangerous despite Pereira making a meal of it. I expected a yellow card and was amazed when it was red.

PLAY There's great passing in the build up to this goal as Yesil, Loftus-Cheek and Quinonez combine to set Gray free on the left. First he beats Shane Ferguson and Shaun Williams to get into the back before a tackle from Jamaican defender nearly brings him down. Rather than win the penalty though Gray stays on his feet and before Mark Beevers can tackle him he curls the ball beyond the reach of Martin in the Millwall goal for a 2-0 lead.

PLAY Patient passing created this opening goal against Oxford United in the league in our second encounter of the season. It starts when Heylen showed his defensive ability to sweep the ball from Kevin Doyle (purchased from Colorado Rapids it seems) and bring it into midfield. Seeing no outlet on the left he switches the ball to Chalobah, forcing the midfielder to take the ball onto the right wing. He then plays a great ball down the line for Kent who cuts in beating Joe Skarz and passing to Ponce who has his back to goal and Chey Dunkley snapping at his heels. The Argentine striker takes the option of a lay-off to Yesil who shoots and scores for the early lead.

PLAY Dino Ndlovu scores from the tightest of angles for a second goal against Port Vale in the league. He first nicks the ball from Remie Streete and runs into the box to shoot but it's blocked by Lewis Bergin. The loose ball is bobbling towards the by-line and Jak Alnwick comes out of his goal to try and beat Ndlovu to it. The South African's first touch puts the ball past the keeper and the second exquisite touch slides it in from the narrowest of angles.

PLAY Here's our only goal from the Wembley encounter with MK Dons. We lost the JPT final 2-1 to our arch rivals but at least we scored first. From the throw in Chalobah passed inside to Gray who tried to square it for Galloway who was on a charge through the middle. Darren Potter got a toe on it but not enough to stop the raiding left back getting the ball into the box with him. Although the ball got away from him initially he managed to beat David Martin to it and score.

PLAY On the charge to the title we grab three vital points at the death against Swindon with the scores level as the 90 minute mark ticks by. We'll ignore the late foul by Saint-Maximin on Yaser Kasim and say the build up starts soon after with Bae's excellent sliding tackle on Lee Marshall. The ball breaks to Yesil who exchanges passes with Mancini and the return from the Italian centre back was perfect for the striker to set himself to score past Tyrell Belford despite Nathan Thompson's last ditch tackle.

PLAYAs well as the class goals you have to love it when the opposition makes a mistake to gift you a goal. Here the mistake was first by Kent who, after receiving Gray's excellent through-ball, tried to play in Ponce on his left when he could tell he would be tackled. Although Ponce got the ball his attempt to get the ball back to Kent was weak and Bradley Garmston looked like he would clear easily. He made the poor decision to pass back to his goalkeeper at short range and Stuart Nelson was clearly not ready for it. Although it looked like the ball would go for a corner he could not be sure and slid to the ground to block with his feet. As he got up he appears to palm the ball back into play which would have been a penalty (had the referee seen it) if not for Kent being there to take the free ball and tap it into the open goal.

PLAY The last video for this blog is the League One title celebrations after beating Gillingham 2-1 away. Heylen wasn't playing in that match so Chalobah lifts the trophy in his last match for the side.