Pa Ceesay, cultivator of dreams
Jacob Breum enters the managers office to find newly appointed Pa Ceesay frantically searching through unpacked boxes. “It has got to be here somewhere”, says Ceesay. He pauses for a second, and then dives into the corner of the room to grab hold of a large and old looking canvas bag. He pulls out what looks like a well beaten garden tool with a long handle and holds it up to Jacob with a huge smile on his face.
“Aha, now I am home” he proclaims. “You are probably wondering what this rusty old thing is aren’t you”. Jacob looks on bewildered but intrigued. “This, my young man, belonged to my Great Grandma. Passed on to my Mother, and then to me. It was used for generations by the great people of my village, my home in Gambia. This crude ‘dabajango’ tool helped to cultivate our fields for growing rice that fed the many people of our land . . . including my younger self” he beamed. “I keep this to remind myself of the cycle of hard work and preparation that brings with it so much opportunity. Jacob young man, we are all but the produce of the hard work and endeavor of others. The simple, unheralded tasks that build the foundations from which we grow.”
“Deijl said you wanted to see me for something”, Jacob announced, not really sure how to respond.
Pa Ceesay had a brief, searching look across his face as if being pulled from a dream. Then a flash of recollection. “Yes Jacob, I did. I want to bring joy to this stadium. To the City of Deventer. My second home. We will attack. We will entertain. Our football will truly inspire and talented young footballers will want to come here because this will be the home where dreams are born. Jacob, you have the talent to inspire. I’ve watched you improve. I have seen your output rise and from the stands I see the joy you get from playing. Your individual brilliance gets people rising from their seats. I need you to be a shining star. I want you to know I have great faith in you. You will be a big part of what I want to achieve here.”
“Well, Thank-You”, Jacob replied cheerfully. “How am I going to do that?”
Pa carefully placed the dabajango onto the front of his desk. “You leave that to me”.
Football Manager Focus
Meet the manager
Meet our protagonist, Pa Ceesay, born in Gambia and set up as a Manager who has been promoted by Go Ahead Eagles from his previous role as a Performance Analyst. He is a motivator and is adept at working with the younger players. The 34 year old wants his team to entertain with an attacking brand of football. He inspires others with his infectious positive outlook and wants his team to bring that same joy to the people of Deventer. He is young and inexperienced but highly qualified with a Continental A License and hoping his extensive player knowledge at the club can help him to hit the ground running and make an impressive start to life in management.
Objectives
Club objectives
- Be competitive in the UEFA Europa league
- Record an Eredivisie top-half finish
- Be competitive in the Dutch Super Cup
I feel there is certainly some room to over achieve here!
First season objectives
With aspirations to be an entertaining and attacking force in the league we will be aiming to achieve the following to represent our managers style of play;
- Top 3 in the Eredivisie for shots – High number of shots on goal to keep those pulses racing
- Top 6 in the Eredivisie for XG – Lots of shooting is all well and good but a high quantity of quality chances gets the people off their seats
- Top 3 in the Eredivisie for successful dribbles – There is nothing more exciting than watching a tricky winger get past their man with pace and drive into space in the final third
- Top for progressive passes – We will want to get the ball forward at every opportunity with intent to maximise the time that our forwards have the ball
- Successfully defend the Dutch Cup win of 2025
- Defeat fierce rivals PEC Zwolle twice in the league
Save objectives
This is my first and introductive save with FM26. I will be doing a little learning as I go and I have no idea how stable the game is going to be. Therefor I do not intend for this to be a long term one and will set a focused list of objectives to work through to the completion of this story;
- Win the Eredivisie title – Achieve the coveted position of Dutch champions and restore Go Ahead Eagles to former glory
- Establish a scouting and transfer network focused locally in Holland and in Scandinavia and Germany, matching a recently successful club strategy
- Provide regular first team opportunities to youth players
- Reach and maintain a 100% positive club atmosphere
Backdrop
Go Ahead Eagles highest Eredivisie finish is 3rd back in the 1967/68 season. They won the top division 4 times in 1917, 1922, 1930 and 1933. The Deventer outfit have been a bit of a yoyo team with their most recent promotion to the Eredivisie coming in the 2020-21 season. In this current season ahead they are predicted to finish 9th, fresh from completing 2024/25 as winners of the Dutch KNVB Cup. We will be looking to repeat this feat and keep the cup in Deventer, a City located on the IJssel River and known for its publishing of books, its tasty ‘Koek’ cake and a well preserved medieval merchant area. PSV, Feyenoord and Ajax are predicted to finish as top 3 but we’ll be trying our best to break into that tier as soon as we can and disrupt the status quo. Can we add any European success to the story while competing in the Europa league? It is time to write our name into Dutch footballing glory once again. To have our Koek and eat it! First up is the Dutch super cup against PSV. Can Pa Ceesay bring an immediate smile to the faces of the Go Ahead Eagles fans?
In the next chapter I will take a closer look at the squad and reveal what tactical direction we’ll be taking to establish our attacking intent.