A New Hope Comments Off
After playing these first five games of season 2011, I had to visit the General Settings section of the main Master League menu to check that the difficulty level is still on Top Player. It is.
The struggles of last season are (mostly) at bay – at least temporarily. Every now and then, it seems, PES2008 plays like a dream and seems easy. I’m having such a period now. They’ve come along before, and gone away before, so I won’t be getting complacent and declaring PES2008 to have finally been cracked.
Fenerbahce 1 – 3 Coventry City
The season opener was against a team who I never had much trouble with last year as far as I can remember. It’s their neighbours, Galatasaray, who are one of my big two bogey teams (Sunderland are the other).
Schwarz scored two quick-fire headed goals from crosses to make it 0-2 to me with barely 20 minutes gone. Fenerbahce showed nothing. Naturally, they scored with their one attack of the second half, making it 1-2. It was the usual scripted rubbish. Curse you Seabass!
However, almost from my kick-off I swept up to their end, and Chiesa found the back of the net with a clipped finish. Lovely.
The league table after 1 game made for some morale-boosting viewing. I was joint-second with Spurs. I was behind Aston Villa only on goal difference.
Newcastle 1 – 0 Coventry City
For the love of… Normal service, it seemed, was resumed in this game. Newcastle scored early. Owen chested the ball down with his back to my goal, turned, and scored – all in the same fluid movement. I’ll bet now that none of my players will ever be able to execute the same move, not even if I play PES2008 from now until the end of time.
I absolutely pounded the Newcastle goal for the rest of the game. But every shot went wide. The ones that didn’t were saved, deflected, hit the bar, hit the post…
Tottenham 1 – 1 Coventry City
This game was almost a carbon copy of the Newcastle game. I got my equaliser five minutes from time. It was a penalty. I got a penalty. My first penalty in five seasons. Schwarz thumped it down the middle as the keeper kindly leapt to one side. A penalty! I had to go and lie down after that. I was in shock.
Galatasaray 0 – 1 Coventry City
Now this was more like it. Tight game, solid defending – Guimaraes running rampant down the right wing – and a deeply satisfying win against one of my two bogey teams. Bring on the Sunderland. I cannot wait.
This was the game when Marcos – my new signing from pre-season – really arrived. He started to dominate the left side of midfield, then all of midfield, then the entire game… He scored the only goal of the game – a goal that was pretty ordinary but vastly significant for me. It came at the end of a spell of pressure where I was starting to think that I had this game exactly where I wanted it and was going to win it. I’ve never really had that feeling in Master League so far. It was very pleasant.
River Plate 0 – 2 Coventry City
After securing this relatively easy this win to round off the opening 5 games, I could hardly bring myself to put down the joypad. But I had to. There was real world stuff to attend to.
Overall, despite the Newcastle defeat, I’d say this was my most satisfying session on the game during the month or so that I’ve had it.
The way my new players have knitted into the team is particularly welcome. Marcos and Braafheid on the left side of my team have been superb. Defensively I’m starting to really, really see that clamping X+Square is the deadliest handicap you can give yourself in PES2008. I know not to do it but I often find myself doing it automatically. I’m trying to stop. Pressing Square on its own, while you control the other player, and block off passing lanes and so forth, is the way to go.
I’m riding high in 5th place after five games. And no red cards yet. I averaged almost one per game last season. So far I’ve had just two yellow cards. All in all, it’s not too shabby. It’s not too shabby at all.