Season 25 saw a D3 title and promotion D2. As David stated, the jump from D3 to D2 is steep, but CSKA has greater ambitions than even D2 and hope not to regress in season 26. This will be CSKA’s first season in D2 under Chris Meida and its first season in D2 since season 14. It has never made an appearance in D1.
GK: We have starting GK Carnesecchi (90) who continues to be solid for Atalanta and is one of the top young GKs in the world. Behind him is Mycael, consistent starter who Brazil U20 and once one of the top GK prospects in the world. However, he’s lost his spot in Serie B and will be aging out of the youth team after this season. Behind him we’ve brought in Miguel Gouveia, a top Portuguese GK prospect.
RB: A two way battle between new West Ham signing Kyle Walker Peters (88) and Alexander Bah (88), the oft-injured Benfica starter. Behind those two are youth players Alex Jimenez (83), new Cherries signing from Milan with a Real Madrid buyback, and Wes Okoduwa, who I believe can develop into a lockdown defender but may need to add to his offensive repertoire. Jean Mambuku is a wild card behind them and Eric da Silva Moreira has now moved to Portugal on loan.
CB: Harry Maguire (90) aka Dursley starts with either Palace starter Chris Richards or Martin Valjent (87s). We continue to have a youth movement at the position. Mamadou Sarr and Jan-Carlo Simic are both 85s and starters at Strasbourg and Anderlecht. Jon Martin (82) is a rotational starter at Sociedad. There is a significant amount of young depth between Tyler Meiser, Freddie Simmonds, Baba Kourouma, and Ben Hawighorst.
LB: Alvaro Carreras (88) has finally claimed the starting spot and has been off to a terrific start for Real Madrid. Kiernan Tierney is his backup. We’ve recently signed Ishe Samuels-Smith with an eye toward the future. He had been a long-time target of CSKA. In the youth cup Jimenez is likely to switch over here with Jon Martin playing RB.
DM: Jordan Henderson (89) will start the season alongside Pape Gueye (88). The oft-injured Romeo Lavia (87) will be backup as his progress has stagnated. The manager believes he still has the potential to be amongst the best at his position. Celtic captain Callum McGregor (87) is a good depth piece as well. From a youth perspective, we have Sekou Kone at Man United and compatriot Hamidou Makalou. Ze Lucas, Pape Diong and Saimon Bouabre, now amongst Neom’s French connection are the youth options.
CM: Hakim Ziyech (88) holds down the starting spot with Brazilian Matheus Pereira (87) behind him. Kendry is finally old enough to be in Europe. Lorran has left for greener pastures and we now see Shakhtar-bound Isaque in his role.
AM: Iago Aspas (89) and Adingra (88) continue to be starters. Bertrand Traore is the main backup. Madrid newboy Mastantuono and Odobert are the main backups. Irankunda is off to a hot start at Watford and Cavan Sullivan continues to impress despite being so young he has barely piqued Trump’s interest. Joel Ndala has been brought in through the Lorran trade.
CF: Ciro Immobile (89) is the undisputed starter. We have a few players who can pop in as backup from other positions. Karim Konate should be returning soon from his torn ACL. Jayden Danns stuck around Liverpool this offseason, which was surprising. We continue to be excited by N’guessan and Bro Hansen’s potential as they see some gametime.
Marketing: The “Bro” campaign was a huge success last year. With HBO releasing the Harry Potter series in the near future and captain Harry Maguire’s uncanny resemblance to Dursley, he is appearing in our new marketing campaign: “Snuggles with Muggles.”
Likely starting lineup: Carnesecchi, Bah, Maguire, Richards, Carreras, Gueye, Henderson, Ziyech, Aspas, Adingra, Immobile.
Youth lineup: Mycael, Martin, Sarr, Simic, Jimenez, Lavia, Paez, Irankunda, Mastantuano, Odobert, Konate
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